Go for something real, not a fairytale
by Carmille Karnstein
Summary: Gail and Holly first meeting at a dinner party at Gail's house. This is my first fanfic and English is not my first language. So please correct if I'm wrong and leave reviews if you like. Thanks.
1. Chapter 1

CHAPTER 1

"We're having a dinner party on Saturday. Make yourself available." Her mother said while looking at both her kids. It was an order. She expected Gail and Steve to be there. Gail tried very hard not to make any rude retorts but her face gave her away. 

"Especially you Gail. I want you to meet some of the officers." Gail groaned. Her mother ignored her and kept talking. "Get yourself comfortable around these officers. So you can learn something." 

Gail couldn't help herself from answering. "Yeah. I could learn how to kiss some asses." She rolled her eyes. Her brother laughed, loud as if what she said was funny. He raised his hands in surrender when Gail stared at him. 

She admit that some of the officers were great to have a conversation with like Officer Shaw and Office Best from 15 Division but some just loved to kiss each other asses. She hated this kind. Her mother stood up and took her plate in her hands. "Both your father and I have great expectations from both of you. I know you will do great Gail." Her mother said before leaving the dinner table to disappear in the kitchen. Then probably went straight to her home office upstairs. 

"Good to know that mother." She muttered, softly. 

Steve looked up to see his little sister. He knew Gail hated social gatherings especially if it involved their mother and her police stuff. "Relax sis. I'll be there. I'll back you up." Steve chewed his dinner loudly. Gross. 

Gail put down her fork and looked at her brother, her eyebrow raised. "Really?" asked Gail, not knowing if she could trust her brother on this. Steve didn't answer but finished his dinner pretty quickly and stood up. "Yeah. You can count on me." He winked at Gail while wiping his mouth with a napkin. Gail shoved him when he tried to hug her. "Urgh. Go away." Gail rolled her eyes when she heard her brother laughing and soon his voice disappeared with the sound of the door shut. 

She sighed. She was supposed to finish her training in the academy in a few months. She didn't have a say in her own future nor was her brother but Steve was so good at this and he was just made detective a few months ago. Gail wondered if she could live up to her parent expectation and became as good as Steve and continuing the Peck legacy. She shook her head and stood up. She had no appetite to eat anymore and soon heading to the kitchen with her and Steve's plates.

* * *

The house was almost crowded with the guests arriving. Her father, Inspector Bill Peck was at the front door greeting the guests while her mother, Superintendant Elaine Peck was in the kitchen, doing what she did best, ordering and making sure everything was in order. Gail looked around the living room and found no familiar faces. She took a glass of wine from the waiter when he passed by. She was hungry but made no effort to go to the kitchen while her mother was in there. She leaned against the wall by the window. 

"You must be the other Peck. Gail Peck." She turned around to see who would be so rude to greet her. The guy was smiling when he saw Gail gave him a once-over. She went back to her drink. The guy chuckled when Gail ignored him completely. "Hello, I'm Weston." He was about to extend his hand for a shake but took it back when Gail raised her eyebrow and didn't take it. 

He stumbled for words to break the ice as Gail wasn't saying anything. "Well, I don't know anyone here so I feel a little bit left out." He said with a nervous laugh. 

"Then why are you here?" Gail asked, eyes now fixed on Weston. He smiled at his effort now that Gail was talking. "Your mother. Uh My father's her boss. She told me about you and kind of thinking to set us up for a possible date." Weston explained. Sounded like something her mother would do. Gail tried to show a little interest, she was bored. 

"What accent is that?" asked Gail. "Oh Nottingham." Weston said proudly then sipping on his glass. "Oh you live there with the band of merry man?" asked Gail with her fake smile. Weston looked a little surprised then moved slowly to Gail. 

"Are you asking me if I'm homosexual?" whispered Weston, his eyes were everywhere clearly afraid people might heard him. 

Gail frowned then shook her head a little. "What were you doing in Nottingham?" Gail asked again. Weston looked relief then smiled brightly. Gail listened to him telling her where he grew up while enjoying her wine but raised her index finger to cut Weston off. 

"Wait. Can we recap? You've only been in Nottingham for two years?" Disbelieved showed on her face. Weston lost her. "I'm sorry. What did you ask me again?" Gail sighed. _Oh God, please help me_. She looked at Weston with his fake British accent trying to offer her another drink when he realised Gail was about to leave. 

"Let me be clear here. There is not enough alcohol in the world that would make me stay here." Weston looked disappointed but asked for Gail's number still. "I'm going now." Gail smiled and walked away leaving Weston behind looking like a lost puppy. 

_Where the hell is Steve_, muttered Gail. She looked around and found her brother talking and laughing with some officers in uniform, enjoying himself. _So much for backing me up, brother_. She was about to go to the kitchen when she heard her mother called for her. She grimaced before turned to walk slowly to her mother who was surrounded by her colleagues. 

"Don't worry Elaine. She's going to be a great Peck." One of her mother's colleagues said after she was introduced. Gail smiled and said thank you but to her mother's dismay, she excused herself. Her mother wouldn't say something bad to her in front of her colleagues. That she knew for sure. 

She decided to go hide in her room after she noticed that every corner in her house were occupied. There wasn't a single place she wouldn't be bothered; even the toilet looked pretty busy with people coming in and out. She made sure her mother didn't see her walking up the stairs. 

She opened her door and closed it behind her. She sighed. 

"What are you doing here?" asked Gail frowned when she noticed an intruder in her room. She crossed her arms on her chest, clearly not happy. The person in question looked up from what Gail sure was a book. She looked surprised but quickly gained her composure and smile. 

"What are you doing here?" The woman asked back. Gail couldn't believe what she heard. How dare this woman questioned her authority in her own room? 

"What do you think I'm doing?" asked Gail back. Hands on her hips now. She looked annoyed. She made sure the woman could see that too. The woman followed Gail's eyes to a picture in a frame on the cupboard. The woman tried to conceal her surprise expression when she saw that Gail had every reason to be in this room and she clearly was an intruder. 

Gail waited, head cocked. The woman talked while Gail eyed the woman in front of her. She was an attractive woman with long brown hair, blue jeans (not to mention wrapped perfectly on her legs), a t-shirt under that green fleece jacket, and she wore glasses. A nerd. 

"I was looking for a place to sit down where nobody was around. The party is doing great 'cause I couldn't find a single spot that isn't occupied. I know I shouldn't be here let alone let myself in other people's room. The other rooms were locked and yours didn't. So I entered." Gail only heard half of the brunette explanation when she saw what she was holding. 

"Is that a book?" Gail made it sound like something yucky while pointing the book in the brunette's hand. The brunette wasn't sure why the blonde in front of her had that look on her face but nodded anyway but was cut off by Gail before she could speak. "You bring a book with you to a dinner party?" asked Gail again, eyebrow rose. _She is definitely a nerd_. She thought that was funny and almost let out a chuckle but kept her straight face. 

"Well, I didn't know I was going until the last minute." The brunette smiled, genuinely. Gail walked to sit on her bed, getting comfortable. It was her room after all. The brunette continued, "My colleague aka my boss asked me to be his plus one for tonight. He got the invitation but didn't want to come alone. So he grabbed me." The brunette laughed a little while trying to explain. Gail didn't react, still had that amused expression on her face which made the brunette smile even wider. 

For a while they didn't say anything but Gail couldn't help but to look at the brunette's appearance. As much as she hated being around stranger, let alone talking to them, she didn't mind the brunette being here at all. She wasn't annoying like Weston, she didn't have a fake British accent and she didn't try to date her. She couldn't help herself to like the smile on the brunette's face. She smiled a lot. 

"Do you have junk food in that lunchbox?" Gail broke the silence. 

The brunette frowned. "Excuse me?" 

Gail stretched her legs on the bed and put her hands behind her head. "I said do you have junk food in that lunchbox, nerd?" Gail repeated herself and cocked her head to the red lunchbox on the table behind the brunette. 

The brunette didn't take offence when Gail called her nerd but laughed and closed her book. "Oh. Nope. No junk food in there." Gail noticed that the brunette had an infectious smile and found herself liking it. 

"Then why are you carrying it around? God I'm hungry," said Gail, groaned. The brunette didn't answer but took a sip from her glass, watching Gail. She looked amused. Gail looked up to see the brunette looking at her then frowned. "What?" she said. The brunette shook her head and offered Gail a drink. Gail got up and went over to pour herself a glass of wine. 

"You're making yourself at home. Stealing a bottle of wine and went reading a book comfortably in my room. Good for you." The brunette just smirked. 

"It's not a lunchbox. It's a forensics' kit. Hence no junk food." She corrected the blonde. 

"Whatever, nerd." Gail took a sip from her glass but her hand stopped when she heard footsteps outside her room. The brunette noticed the sound too. Both their attention now at the door, waiting. Gail had a bad feeling that it was her mother looking for her. She didn't lock her door. 

"Shit! Let's hide." Gail stood up quickly, almost spilled her drink. She grabbed the brunette's wrist and looked around. "There!" she said softly, pointing to her closet. The brunette almost stumbled but quickly grabbed her book and her lunchbox on the table to follow the blonde. Gail almost shoved the brunette into the closet and sat next to her then quietly closed the closet. She felt the brunette's eyes on her so she put her finger on her mouth. The brunette nodded. 

"Gail? Are you in there?" She heard her mother shouted. Then the sound of the door opened and footsteps walking in. 

"Where in the world is that girl!?" She heard her mother angry voice. She didn't want to be found just yet. Gail sat there, eyes closed and held her breath hoping her mother wouldn't hear her. After like forever, she heard the door slammed shut. 

"You can breathe now." The brunette said as if she could see Gail still held her breath. 

Gail exhaled. "That was close!" Gail opened the closet and switched on the light. She looked next to her when she heard the brunette's chuckled. "What?!" She asked a little bit annoyed. 

The brunette shook her head and let out a small laugh. "I felt like seventeen again." 

They both sat there silently. 

"Cheers!" The brunette raised her glass and expected Gail to do the same instead getting a raised eyebrow from the blonde instead. The brunette smiled and tilted her head a little to the right which Gail found surprisingly adorable and sweet. She raised her glass. "Cheers for not getting caught." They both laughed at her comment and both stretched their legs to get more comfortable. 

"I can't believe you bring that lunchbox into hiding with us." 

"It contains an expensive set of forensic kits." The brunette couldn't help but smiled. 

"Nerd." Gail said short. Who would steal them? Unbelievable. 

"Why aren't you at the party?" asked the brunette. 

"Why aren't you at the party?" shot Gail back. The brunette smirked. 

Gail sighed. "It was my parent's party and I'm running away from Weston." 

"Who's Weston?" asked the brunette, sipping her wine. 

"A guy with a fake British accent." Gail told the brunette the conversation she had with Weston. 

"Two years? Really?" Gail loved the sound of the brunette's laugh. It sounded honest and sincere. She smiled and nodded. 

"But is he that bad that you have to run?" asked the brunette. 

Gail snorted. "If he was the last person on earth left, I'd rather die a virgin!" The brunette laughed. Gail smiled at the sound that made her felt at ease. She looked at the brunette. She didn't know how she could have a conversation with her in the first place. She blamed the alcohol. 

"You can date him if you like." Gail offered. 

"I'll pass. I don't date his type." The brunette said. 

"You mean a guy with a fake British accent is not your type?" Gail asked, resting her head against the wall. 

"No. I mean I don't like men." The brunette explained. 

"Yeah. I think I don't like men either." Gail shuddered when she remembered Weston. 

The brunette laughed. "No I mean I'm a lesbian." She corrected her. 

"Oh I mean I hate people." Gail said sipping her wine. She could hear the brunette chuckled. 

The silence made Gail felt awkward although the brunette seemed to be at ease. 

"Question. How is it when you both want to get dressed?" Gail asked curious. 

"What do you mean?" The brunette raised her eyebrow at that question. 

"The best part of dating is getting dressed." 

"How does it work with the guys?" The brunette smiled while sipping her wine. 

"I mean, how. One of you gets dressed first while the other wait…." Her words sounded stupid when it came out of her mouth. 

Gail shook her head and said "Stupid. Stupid question." The brunette had that side-ways smiled on her face and nodded, agreed that it was a stupid question. 

She still had that curiosity. "What about clothes. Do you guys share each other clothes? What if she wants to borrow your clothes? You okay with that?" 

The brunette didn't answer her quickly. Instead sipped her wine and took a look around her. She could see the blonde's preferred clothes. She smiled and tilted her head slightly to look at the blonde. That brought a cold "what" from the blonde. 

"I won't share your things." The brunette said, smile still on her face. In fact she looked amused. 

"What's wrong with my things?" asked Gail, trying hard to look offended. 

"Nothing. They're just not my style." The brunette said, confidence the blonde didn't look as offended as she let out. 

"What? Not enough fleece for you? Not enough backpacks?" Gail said while looking at the smiling brunette. She wondered if the brunette ever got tired of smiling. 

The next thing she knew, the brunette leaned closer to her. The next thing she knew, her lips was on hers. The next thing she knew, her world had stopped. She could feel the brunette soft lips on hers. What surprising for Gail was that she didn't do anything to stop the brunette from kissing her. She felt her desire to kiss that soft lips back. It was only a light kiss that lingered and only lasted for a few seconds but it felt like forever for Gail. The next thing she knew, she felt a little disappointed when the brunette withdrew. 

Gail was speechless. Her brain tried to explain and justify what had happened. Was she drunk? She asked herself. No she wasn't. She could tell if she wasn't kissing another woman. Gail was certain that the brunette too wasn't drunk. Wait, no Gail. She was a lesbian. While Gail sat there contemplating, running theories in her head, she saw the brunette getting out the closet. 

She looked up with confused expression on her face. She licked her lips. She was searching for words to say when she saw the brunette bend down to take the lunchbox and her bottle of wine. 

"I'm gonna take this with me. It's plenty out there." She raised the bottle up in the air. She smiled when she saw the blonde lost for words. 

She was about to turn and leave when she heard the blonde spoke. "Sorry. Where are you going?" 

"As much as I love to hide in your closet, I have to go." The brunette said. "Thanks. It was a great dinner party. I had fun." She winked. 

Gail sat in her closet dumbfounded as she watched the brunette opened and closed the door. She blinked as her brain tried to grasp what just happened a few moments ago. A chick just kissed her and she kissed her back. Not just any chick, a nerd chick. 

_What the hell_, she said softly. She got up almost tripped herself. Shit. Stupid high heels. She kicked off her heels and walked as fast as she could hope she wouldn't lose track of the brunette. She walked downstairs and scanned her surroundings. Nope. She went to the kitchen hoping the brunette was going to steal another bottle of wine but she was nowhere to be found. Shit. She cursed again. She walked to the front door. 

"Gail!" She heard her brother called her. She ignored him and opened the door and stood there. At that moment, Gail knew she had lost her. 

"Damn! I didn't even ask for her name!" Regret. Disappointed. That was all Gail felt right now. 

"What? Whose name?" asked her brother when he stood at the door, his eyes looking towards the street. 

"Nobody." Gail shook her head and walked back to her room.


	2. Chapter 2

This happens a few weeks after the dinner party. It's not a long chapter. No golly yet as I didn't want to jump straight to their second meeting. Next chapter will be their second meeting.

Thank you for reading. Enjoy :)

Disclaimer: I love Gail Peck and Holly Stewart. I do not own Rookie Blue or any of its amazing characters.

CHAPTER 2

The alarm on her bedside table went off. Gail rolled on her bed to reach it and turned it off. She stayed there, eyes closed. It was Saturday and also her day off from the academy. So she didn't have any plans except to lie in. She wasn't so sure about her mother. She might have arranged something without her knowing or set her up with some guy for a date. She lay there on her back with her hands behind her head and crossed her legs at the ankle.

It was exactly two weeks ago. Unlike today, she had a company at that time. She couldn't help smiling when that particular event crossed her mind, especially when the brunette crossed her mind.

She didn't understand what she was feeling or why couldn't she push it to the back of her mind. She took a pillow and put it over her face. "Ugh!"

_No, Gail. This isn't like you_, she said to herself. She tried to go back to sleep as it was still too early but lazily getting out of bed when she knew it was futile.

After showered, she went straight to the kitchen for breakfast. Her parents weren't there but her brother was, as usual. He was in his formal suit for work. If he had to work on the early Saturday morning, he must had a big case at the station.

"Good Morning sleepyhead." Steve said, pouring a coffee into a glass and handed it to Gail.

"Morning."

Both were quiet enjoying their breakfast. Gail was unusually quiet and had a distant look in her eyes which brought Steve's attention to her. It wasn't like Gail was a talker but he at least would get her sister's snarky comments or remark in the morning. He loved their siblings' banters.

Feeling Steve's eyes on her, she looked up. She had thought about asking Steve but wasn't sure if it was a good idea. Steve cleared his throat letting Gail know that he knew something was bothering her. Ignoring Steve, Gail went back staring at her breakfast. The breakfast looked more appetizing than Steve.

Steve scratched his forehead and shrugged. He looked at his watch to make sure he wasn't late and continued chewing his breakfast.

Gail bit her lower lip and looked at Steve, thinking whether or not to ask him. She didn't realize she was staring blankly at Steve until he cleared his throat the second time.

He put his hands on the table and said, "Do I look more handsome than I was yesterday or there's some dirt on my face?" asked Steve, trying to start a conversation.

Gail tried to hide her surprised getting caught staring at him. "Definitely the former." She smirked.

"I know you Gail. Tell me. What's going on in there?" Asked Steve, pointing his finger to Gail's head. He didn't think he had anything to worry about but ask anyway. If it was something big, Gail would have told him if she was in trouble and needed his help.

"Steve, I have something to ask." Gail suddenly felt uncomfortable in her chair.

"Okay. What do you want to ask?"

Gail took a deep breath. Steve squinted as his curiosity growing at his sister's weird behavior.

"Do you happen to know about a doctor that was invited to our dinner party last two weeks?" Gail didn't realize she was holding her breath. _There, I said it_.

Steve frowned. He gave it a thought then shook his head. "I don't know any doctor."

"Okay." Gail reached for her breakfast and shoved it into her mouth and hoping her brother would just leave right now.

"You want me to ask around?"

"No."

"To satisfy my curiosity, what is this about?" Gail now had his full attention.

Gail shrugged, refused to say anything. She regretted asking him in the first place.

Steve's eyes grew wide when he thought of what could be the reason Gail was acting weird.

"Wait a minute!" He pointed his finger at Gail. "You were looking for someone that day, weren't you!"

_Oh, God_. Gail looked up to meet Steve's amused expression. He grinned. "Something like 'Damn! I didn't even ask for her name!'" He laughed.

That was exactly what she had said. Great. She should have known that Steve would figure it out.

"I was right!" he said, clapping his hand when he saw Gail's face. He couldn't quite make it. _Did he just see his sister embarrassed or blushed?_

"Okay Gail. Tell me everything. Maybe I can help." He's done tormenting his sister. It was big alright but not that kind of a big problem he could actually helped Gail with.

"That's the problem. I don't know anything. Who. Where. When. What or how!" Gail sighed. Even if she knew, she wouldn't tell him yet.

"That sounds complicated." Steve shook his head. If Gail didn't want to tell, it was pointless to keep asking. He offered a solution instead. "Why don't you ask mom? Ask if you could have the guest list or just randomly ask her if she invited a doctor that day."

Gail immediately looked up. "Don't you dare say anything to her!"

Steve raised his hands in surrender. "Relax. I'm just trying to help and you know I'm not going to tell her. Since when do we tell her this kind of stuff anyway?" He smiled, assured Gail that he wasn't going to spill the beans.

Well, that wasn't such a bad idea. Gail was shaking her head. "No way. I'm not asking her. What would I tell her if she wants to know why?"

"I don't know. Make up an excuse or something." Even Steve knew it wasn't easy to fool their mother.

Gail had thought about that earlier but decided against it. Her mother would never give her the list. Instead she could be launching her own investigation for all she knew. Everything that there was to know about the brunette would be in her mother's hand. The brunette didn't deserve to be harassed by Elaine Peck although she did owe Gail one thing.

Steve chuckled. He knew what his sister was thinking. He would be hesitated if it was him too. "Then what are you going to do?"

Well it was possible to sneak into her mother's office to look for the list. She could totally do that. She nodded slowly but enough for Steve to notice. He grinned.

"You have something on your mind. Like a break in plan?"

"First, it isn't a break in if the room you intend to go is in your house and the door happens to be unlocked. Second, it's none of your business." Gail snorted.

Steve grinned. That was Gail. "Tell you what. If you ever find this person, do introduce us. I really want to meet the person who can make my little sister blushes." Gail shot 'Jerk' at her brother.

"Even thinking about breaking and entering her mother's office!" he added. "but don't get your hopes up. It's been.. what.. two weeks right? She might have thrown away the list."

He had a point. "Whatever. Don't you have bad guys to catch or a crime to solve to make the world a better place?" Mind made up, Gail gone back to her breakfast.

"Yes I do. I'm leaving." Steve tried to hug Gail on his way out, like he always did. Gail pushed him away, like she always did. He laughed. "Good luck, Gail."

"Thanks. I need that." Gail said, rested her back against the chair.

* * *

Gail wasted no time and was at her mother's office after breakfast. She looked around and thought how many times she had been in this room. She could count it with her fingers. This wasn't a place for child's play. The books were kept neatly on the bookshelves. All the files were kept in a few boxes on the floor. Last night coffee cup was still on her desk.

Being a police officer, her parents were very strict when it came to their upbringing, especially her mother ever since they were very young. When other kids were enjoying their summer break bonding with their families or just hang out with friends, her parents would bring them to attend summer camp or any activities that could enhanced their skills or whatever that would be an advantage for them when they soon became a police officer themselves. Because of that, both she and Steve had grown to depend on themselves while their parents were busy with their work. Because of that, both she and Steve hadn't had a close relationship with their parents.

_This isn't the time, Gail_.

She walked slowly to her mother's chair and sat down. On the desk there was a bunch of paperwork screaming for her mother's attention. She went through every stack of papers even though she doubted her mother would mixed up her work paper with something trivial piece of paper like a guest list for a party. She tried to open the drawer but it was locked.

She sat back and crossed her arms. She looked around the room, putting herself into her mother's shoes. She would stay late at night and buried herself in her work. Her father was the same.

She felt her cellphone vibrating in her pocket. She took it out and saw a text from Steve.

_Are you still in mom's office? Cuz she's on her way back. She left something at her office_. Steve texted.

_Thanks brother. Appreciated it_. She replied.

_No problem._ _Find what you're looking for?_ He asked.

_Nope_. She replied then shoved her phone into her pocket.

Gail sighed. _She probably threw it away already_._ Why didn't I do this sooner? Like a day after? Stupid Gail!_

Giving up, Gail made sure everything was how she found them before leaving.

* * *

Meanwhile, in an apartment somewhere around Toronto….

Her friends had been setting her up for a date with just about any single lesbian they knew. Sometimes it was their friends and sometimes it was a friend of a friend. She didn't really mind. She went to every single of them but none really caught her attention. It wasn't that the women weren't interesting and she wasn't a picky either. In fact she had been very open-minded about this. She kept contact with some of them who would ask to stay friends which perfectly fine with her.

She shook her head. As long as she stayed single, her friends wouldn't give up no matter what reason she gave them. She sighed.

It was a lazy Saturday. The movie she had been watching was long forgotten when her mind wandered to one specific woman. The thought of the blonde made her smile.

It was unexpected meeting. If she wanted to be honest with herself, she was surprised that things went very well with them considering the blonde's first reaction of seeing her in her room. The blonde looked like she was going to snap at her. She was even more surprised when the blonde didn't but stood by the door with hands in hip, looking all bothered and annoyed. That was when she found her composure and acted like it wasn't a big deal entering the room without her permission.

She closed her eyes trying to picture the blonde in her head. She remembered every single detail. How could she forget her baby blue eyes, pale skin and long beautiful blonde hair? Her pale skin made her bright red lipstick stood out which made her looked sexy. She was wearing a dress although her clothes in the closet were nothing like that. She had an attitude but it amused her to no end.

She chuckled when she remembered their conversation about lesbian getting dressed and how the blonde was offended when she said she wouldn't share her things. Then the magic happened. She didn't know where she got the courage to kiss the blonde. She wasn't drunk. She knew what she was doing. She felt like the blonde wanted to return the kiss but she withdrew for the reason she didn't even know.

The ringing of her cellphone brought her back to reality. She groaned and reached for her cellphone on the table.

"Hey! What are you doing?" Lisa's loud enthusiastic voice came on the other line.

"Daydreaming." She answered, lazy.

"Aw. Something interesting?" asked Lisa, being nosy.

"Nah. Just something that happened two weeks ago." She didn't think telling Lisa was a good idea. She might make her look for the blonde.

"What happened two weeks ago?" asked Lisa again.

"Hey. Is tonight still on?" she asked changing the subject. Hoped Lisa took the bait.

She did. "Of course! I've been waiting for this like since a week ago! Don't tell me you bailed out!"

"No. It's on. I'll come by your place to hang out. Then we can go together tonight."

"Cool. I'll see you later then." She hung up after exchanging byes.

She got up, turned the television off and headed to her room to get change. As she was getting dressed, she wondered if they would meet again. Somehow, she had a feeling that their paths were to cross again one day.


	3. Chapter 3

Thank you for the reviews. I appreciated it :) I love every Golly scenes in the show but they have so little screen time. Too bad Holly isn't one of the main characters. I don't want to change anything so I put them where they fit. Credit goes to the show writers. 

Thank you for reading. Enjoy :) 

Disclaimer: I love Gail Peck and Holly Stewart. I do not own Rookie Blue or any of its amazing characters. 

CHAPTER 3 

"That's all for today. One thing before you guys head out. The division wants to welcome our new rookies, Traci Nash, Dov Epstein, Chris Diaz, Andy McNally and Gail Peck to 15 Division. All of you should be proud to join this division because only the best comes here. So from now on, we are your family. We can hate each other but we will still have each other's back." Staff-Sergeant Best said while looking at the new rookies who had a proud smile on their faces. 

Everyone in the prep room gave them a quick applause. 

"Now everybody, let's do our job. Let's serve and protect!" Staff-Sergeant Best wrapped up the prep for today and headed out. 

Chris spoke to Dov next to him. "I'm so excited to patrol. I've wanted to be a cop my whole life. It's a dream come true." 

"Yeah I know Chris. You already told me that. Remember? Like more than once?" Dov stood up and went to the board to see who his partner was for today. Chris followed him. 

"Looks like you'd be my partner today, McNally. We're going to have a great time. For a start, you can call me Oliver." Officer Oliver Shaw spoke to Andy and patted her back. "Come on." Andy looked excited, followed him out the door. 

"Man! I'm stuck at the desk." Chris looked annoyed. "You get to patrol." He added when he saw Dov was partnered with Officer Noelle Williams. 

Officer Williams was standing next to Dov. "You can call me Noelle. I have one rule when it comes to my squad car. No fancy or colourful bag, especially pink is coming in my car." Dov shrugged, wasn't sure what she meant but went out with his training officer regardless. 

"It's you and me today, Chris." Traci said to Chris while pointing at the board. Chris looked on. "We're missing all the actions." He shook his head and went out with Traci to start his day. 

The others left with their respective partners for the day. 

"I'll be your training officer for today. I'm Marlo Cruz." Officer Marlo Cruz cocked her head to Gail. 

Gail looked up at the board to see she had been assigned with Officer Cruz. "Okay." 

"Let's go Peck." Gail followed her training officer without saying another word. 

As she was walking out she heard someone called for her. She didn't have to turn to know who it was. Officer Cruz saw Steve was coming their way and told Gail she'd be waiting for her in their squad car. Gail nodded and grinned at her brother. Steve had moved out of their parent's house two months ago. Even though he came home once in a while, Gail could hardly see her brother as much as she used to. Maybe it was a good thing she had been assigned at the same division as her brother. She kind of missed him but kept that little secret to herself. 

"Hey! Welcome to 15! It's your first day. Are you excited?" Steve patted Gail on the back, looked proud. Another Peck had joined the police force. 

"Yeah I'm so excited. Thanks!" Gail gave Steve her fake excited expression. 

Ignoring his sister, Steve spoke. "After last night at the Penny, I thought you guys were wasted but good thing that you made here on time." 

Gail and the other rookies were celebrated by the other officers in the division at the Penny. They all didn't drink too much. Nobody wanted to be late on their first day. 

Steve's cellphone rang. He reached for it in his pocket and giving Gail a signal to wait. Gail looked at her watch and told Steve she would be late. 

"I need to go Steve. You're going to be the reason I'm late on my first day. Your Superintendent mom wouldn't be so proud of you." Gail said, annoyed. 

With an apologetic smile, he covered his phone with his hand and said "Be careful out there. If something happens to you, mom will kill me." 

Gail rolled her eyes. She had a long lecture and advice from her parents, mostly her mother this morning over breakfast which she appreciated it. She was a rookie but she was one of the bests in the academy. Nothing would prepare what would happen in the street but she wouldn't take her job easy and always be alert. That was what she learnt at the academy. Besides she would be riding with her training officer. 

"I will." With that, Steve waved and went back talking to his phone. 

Pulling the strap of her bag in her shoulder, she rushed to find her training officer.

* * *

"Okay Peck. As your training officer, you will listen to what I say. You will do what I tell you to do and you will not do what I tell you not to do. Do I make myself clear?" said Cruz started the ignition. 

"One more thing. This thing happens. Please remember not to leave your car keys in the car before you get out of the car." Cruz added as they were heading out. 

Gail snorted. "Who would be so stupid to do that?" 

"Well it can happen to anybody. One time a new rookie left his car key in the car. When he came back the car was gone. When we found it later that day, the firearms in the car were all gone." 

"Wow that's the biggest screw up." 

They were only twenty minutes in patrol when the radio buzzed. 

"We have a 911 called. A body was found in 1312 Logan Avenue Park. Is there any available unit to attend?" 

"It's 1534. We'll take it." Cruz looked at Gail and back to the road. They weren't too far from the location. 

"Congratulations Peck. It's your lucky day. You get the taste of your first crime scene. Hit it." Gail did as she was told. Sirens went off and they sped off to the location.

* * *

They arrived at the location to find two frantic young couple probably in their twenties. Cruz was trying to calm them down but to no avail. 

"Speak one at a time. Tell me what happened." Cruz sighed when they both started talking. All Gail could hear was they were just doing what cute couples would normally do like playing a hide and seek, fooling around or they could be doing something else. Who knew? 

Cruz ordered them to show where they found the body while trying very hard to understand what they were saying. 

"Landed on top of what?" shouted Cruz, trying to be even louder than the couples to get their attention. 

Gail walked to where the girl pointed. She called Cruz. 

"Cruz. Someone's been here awhile." Gail looked up at Cruz when she saw the body. 

"Okay. Go take the yellow tape in the car. We have to contain the perimeter and wait for the others to come." Gail nodded and went back to the car while Cruz took out her notebook to start questioning the couple.

* * *

Her first day wasn't too bad. She got her first crime scene and a possible murder. She would brag to Chris and the others later when she got back to the station. Right now, she was ordered to guard the crime scene to make sure nobody crossed the line. Her mind wandered and that was when someone ducked under the tape and walked passed her. 

"Hey! Lunchbox! You're not allowed down there." Gail said quickly. She'd be damned if the crime scene was contaminated under her watch or letting someone carrying a lunchbox walked passed her! 

"Thanks. I appreciated it." The woman said without stopping. 

"No. I said you're not allowed down there." Gail hated to repeat herself. She was getting annoyed. 

The woman turned. Their eyes met. Gail froze in surprised by the sight in front of her. The woman had the same reaction. For a moment time stood still. Gail had butterflies in her stomach. She wondered why. 

The woman broke the silence. "Are you the girl in the closet?" She asked, a little hesitated. 

Gail knew it right then that this was the brunette she had been looking for. She tried not to show any emotions and kept her stony-face. 

Ignoring her question, she looked at the woman from head to toe. 

"Long brown hair, jeans, fleece jacket and glasses. Ah not to forget that lunchbox." She pointed at the lunchbox in the woman's hand. "You're definitely the nerd I know. You haven't changed much." Gail watched the brunette carefully while walking slowly towards the brunette who was now smiling. 

"Well that's me. For the second time this is not a lunchbox." She explained. 

"Whatever. I wish you had cheese puffs in there." Gail said, snorted. 

The brunette pushed her glasses up her nose with a finger. Amused. "I need to get some samples." 

"Who are you?" Frowning, Gail asked. 

"I'm Doctor Holly Stewart. I'm the forensic pathologist." 

"Well you should've told me that before." _I mean way before, like a few months ago. When we were in the closet or maybe before you decided to leave and left me dumbfounded in the closet after that little stunt you pulled?_ Gail had her inner monologue. 

"Well. I thought I was obvious." Holly said while raising her forensics' kit. 

"Only to nerds. Can you come back later?" It was a polite request from Gail. It was her job. 

The brunette tilted her head, couldn't believe what she just heard. "You're not up to your medical jurisprudence. We need to determine the cause of death. I test the water for diatoms and if we find the diatoms to the bone marrow… Oh did you know if the femur still intact?" Holly kept talking her science. 

Gail was shaking her head but she wasn't sure if she meant to say she didn't know if the femur still intact or to everything Holly just said. Holly was still talking about why she should be allowed to collect samples from the crime scene and explaining the whole procedures to Gail like a nerd she was. 

"Why are you saying all these words?" Gail had that confused expression on her face. She had no idea what the woman was babbling about. 

Holly smiled. The woman in front of her looked so confused it amused her. 

"Alright. I need some of you to stay here and someone goes along to the morgue." Detective Swarek was writing something on his notebook. He looked up to see both of the responding officers on scene. 

"I'll stick around." Cruz volunteered looking at Gail. 

"Alright. I'll go to the morgue. It's never too late to learn about medical jurisprudence." Gail said, raising her hands in frustration. Holly shook her head. 

"Alright then. Let's solve this case!" Detective Swarek's attention was now back to the decomposed body in front of him. Not much left, just bones. 

Holly smiled and walked to where the body was and squatted next to the others to collect her samples. 

Gail went back to where she was standing and stood there watching. _Doctor Holly Stewart_. _Holly_. It was a good name and she was a forensic pathologist. What a small world. 

Holly looked up to see Gail was staring at her and raised her eyebrows then went back to focus on the job at hand.

* * *

At the morgue.. 

"So what are you doing over there?" asked Gail. She had been in the morgue for over an hour. She was getting bored. None of them said anything. 

"You haven't told me your name yet." Holly said, busying herself with the bones on her dead-bodies table. 

"Hello. I'm Officer Gail Peck. Nice to meet you." Gail fingers touching her name tag on her vest. 

Holly remembered that was what she was called by her mother. 

"You can call me Officer Peck or just Gail. It's up to you." Gail wouldn't mind if she was addressed by her first name. She would call her Holly, not Doctor Stewart. 

"Okay Gail." Holly smiled. "I'm putting together a puzzle. You want to know what I know so far? Look here." 

Gail shrugged. "No thanks. I only see bones." She settled on the table by the window. She picked up a magazine, turned a few pages and read it. 

"Coronary Artery Sclerosis. An analysis of an autopsy?" Gail said slowly and loudly. Holly managed to look up and saw Gail making that yucky face again. 

She chuckled. "I wrote that stuff." 

Gail looked up from the magazine and muttered, "I bet you did." Nerd. 

Their conversation was interrupted when Detective Swarek came in to the lab to check on new findings. Holly explained what she had found and showed him some of the fractures on the bones. Gail stood next to Holly, listening and learning while they discussed their theories based on the new information. He left after a few minutes to follow up on a new lead. 

It was late in the afternoon when Holly had finished her examination of the body. Gail was still in the lab. 

"You had fun?" Holly asked. 

"I was ordered to be here." Gail said. 

"Something tells me you like it here." It was true. Gail could have left long ago but chose to stay here in her lab. 

"I like this place." Gail looked around. "I could live here." 

Holly chuckled. She sat on her chair. "Really? That's interesting. Officers usually can't stand to stay more than five minutes in the lab. They will go buy a cup of coffee upstairs which mind you only takes five to ten minutes but they usually don't come back after a few hours later to check if we have new information. Well they only stay here if it is an urgent case and then they leave." 

"Well this is an urgent case." Gail retorted. 

"Yeah but we got the important details like an hour ago." Holly made it sounded like a question. 

"Is that your polite way of asking me to leave?" Gail said, offended. 

Before Holly could answer, she added. "I think it's unfair because I didn't chase you out of my room last time. It'd be right for you to do to let me stay here." 

Holly shook her head. "No. No Gail." 

"Don't get me wrong. I'm not asking you to leave. I'm just wondering why you prefer to stay here than out there. Like I said most of you don't." Holly tried to make Gail see her point. 

"Well I'm not like other officers." Gail leaned back on her chair. 

_I can see that_, Holly thought. "To be honest, I loved you being here. You know I usually work alone but it's nice to have someone to talk with once in a while. Although having a one-way conversation with my new friend isn't that bad, it's just good to talk with someone who will talk back. You know." 

"No offence to the dead, Holly but seriously, are you telling me you've been talking to dead people?" Gail shook her head. _God, how weird could this woman be_? 

Holly laughed. 

"I'm hungry." Gail said. 

"Sorry. I don't have cheese puffs." Holly joked. 

"I need more than cheese puffs." Gail said. 

Gail stood up. "I'm going to the Penny. Want to come? Grab something to eat or maybe a drink?" added Gail. She was hungry. She had no other reason why she asked Holly and it would be rude not to ask her to join after telling her she was going to the Penny. That was what she told herself. 

Holly looked at her watch then shrugged. "Sure. Why not." 

"You have an appointment to attend later?" asked Gail noticing Holly checking the time. 

"Yeah I'm meeting a friend but it's in a couple of hours." Holly said while taking Gail's jacket on her chair and handed it to Gail.

* * *

At the Penny.. 

"I thought you said you were hungry. We can go somewhere else." Holly said when she saw Gail only ordered drinks. 

"Suddenly I don't feel like eating. So how long have you been here at the division?" Gail asked, wanting to ask Holly a question than tending to a more pressing situation like answering her stomach's scream to be filled. 

"I've been here only a few months. The previous pathologist accepted another job offer. I was his plus one at your mother's dinner party." Holly explained. 

"Oh. So you've been promoted." 

"Yeah. Kind of. I was his intern." Holly smiled. 

"Speaking of that dinner party, just so you know, since you came in, I put a lock to my door. Nothing and nobody is going to pass through it. I was lucky it was you." Gail said to Holly and thought about the meaning in her words. 

Holly had that expression on her face. The face she'd normally had when she was thinking. As if she could get the double meaning in Gail's words. 

"I mean I have lots of video games collection in my room." Gail added quickly, now regretted ever said it. 

Holly laughed. "I noticed you have a lot of them but who would want to steal them?" 

"Says the woman who brings her lunchbox aka forensics' kit into hiding. Seriously, who would want to steal those?" Gail snorted. 

Holly laughed even louder. "It was a reflex. I just happened to grab it. It's more like a best friend to me as gun to you." 

"That's a clever way to compare your lunchbox to my gun." Gail drank her beer all up. 

"Give me your phone." Gail said after putting down her glass. Holly handed Gail her phone without a question. 

"A Blackberry?" Gail asked. 

"Yeah. It's a Z10." Holly took her phone back from Gail and typed in her password to unlock the phone. She handed it back to Gail and looked on. 

Gail typed something on her phone and then she took out her own phone from her pocket when it rang. 

"Done. I saved my number in yours." Holly looked at her phone and found a new entry in her contact list. She chuckled when she saw Gail saved her name as 'The Girl in the Closet'. 

"If you need help fending off bad guys, or bad girls, give me a call. Protect and serve, that's what I do." _That's a good reason to give her your number_, Gail thought. 

Holly sipped her drink while looking at Gail. She knew this would happen. 

They chatted for hours until Holly had to excuse herself to meet her friend. Finding no reason to be there anymore, Gail left after Holly and decided to stop by a restaurant for a take away.


	4. Chapter 4

wkgreen: The whole Golly fandom knew they will meet again except Gail :) 

Thank you for reading and reviews. Enjoy :) 

Disclaimer: I love Gail Peck and Holly Stewart. I do not own Rookie Blue or any of its amazing characters. 

CHAPTER 4 

She was humming in the bathroom. It had been a few days but she still had that good feeling factor. She hadn't been this cheerful in the morning for a while now. Her mind wandered to her encounter with Holly. She couldn't help but to smile. She could tell that Holly too was happy to see her. What a very small world. 

She looked in the mirror and satisfied with what she saw. _You are a police officer now. You are Gail Peck_. She smiled to her reflection in the mirror then went downstairs for breakfast. 

Her parents were having discussion on a breakfast table, as usual. She took her place next to her mother. 

"How was your first day?" Her mother asked. She knew it was coming. Her father looked up but didn't say anything but Gail knew he wanted to know the same thing. 

She came home late that day because she was avoiding bumping into her mother and her father. She was also late the day after that until last night. "It was great. I rode with Officer Cruz and guess what, I had my first crime scene. A body was found in the park by two young couples. The body was badly decomposed but after some tests in the lab, they figured he's been dead about 10 years." Gail talked more than usual. 

"Did you know who did it?" asked her mother, putting her fork down on her plate. She paid full attention to Gail now. 

"Yeah. Detective Swarek made an arrest. The killer turned out to be the victim's father. He was abused since he was a kid." Gail told what she knew from Detective Swarek. 

"Good. Did you learn anything?" 

"Well, I get to see how Detective Swarek conducts the investigation. How he concludes some of the information he gets to form some theories of how the victim might have died and what is the cause of his death. I was down at the lab when he discussed it with the forensic pathologist." _Doctor Holly Stewart, The forensic pathologist_. She smiled. 

Her mother nodded, satisfied with what she heard so far. "Great. Keep it up. Learn as much as you can from your senior officers." 

"Yes mother." Gail was having a good mood so what her mother said didn't sound as bad as she thought it would be. Even if her mother said something bad, she would have just smiled. 

"You better run now. You're going to be late." Her father reminded Gail. 

"Geez! I'm leaving." Gail said goodbye and left.

* * *

At the station 

"I get to patrol today. I hope something will happen." Chris said then corrected himself. "I mean I don't want anything bad happen to anybody. Just .." 

"We get what you mean Chris." Andy chuckled. 

Gail bragged. "I had my first crime scene on my first day. Although the day after that was just boring." 

"Yeah. I heard about that. That one case Detective Swarek was working on." Chris looked interested. "You stayed all day at the morgue. Was it gross?" 

"Yeah. That's the one. No. I had fun." Gail said while reaching for doughnuts Chris brought for them. Andy, Dov and Traci took one each. They shared their stories and how their days went so far. 

"Let's go rookies. Briefing in 5 minutes." Officer Shaw shouted when he saw they were still sitting on their chairs. 

They all got up and followed Officer Shaw to prep room.

* * *

"Hey Chris. Have fun." Dov said to Chris as he followed his training officer for today. He looked excited. 

"Peck, you're coming with me." Officer Shaw said to Gail when he saw her. Gail smiled and nodded. 

"It's good that you were assigned to this division." Officer Shaw said while putting his bag in the trunk of the car. Gail did the same. 

"Yeah. I just hope I don't disappoint my parents." Gail said, slowly. She knew how high her parent's expectations for her to do great just because she was a Peck. She leaned against the car. 

"What are you talking about darlin'? Sam told me you did good." Officer Shaw tried to assure Gail. She didn't think she did badly but she didn't do great either. 

"Besides, you got to take it easy. Don't pressure yourself too much. That only opens for mistakes to creep in. You have to stay calm and have a clear head. That way whatever decision you make would probably be the right ones depending on the situation." Officer Shaw smiled. "Come on. Get in the car. I'll give you the talk." Officer Shaw was already in the car when Gail looked up to see him. 

"What talk?" asked Gail, getting inside the car. She made sure her seat belt was on. 

"You know the talk." Officer Shaw smiled. 

They stopped by the coffee shop where Officer Shaw had his coffee and breakfast every morning while Gail waited in the car. He came back with a bag of sandwiches and a cup of coffee. 

"Here. Have some." He offered a sandwich to Gail. She took it so not to offend him even though she already had her breakfast. 

"As I was saying, keep your head down, listen to your training officer and your fellow officers. The most important thing is follow your orders. Do you understand?" He explained while taking a bite off his sandwich. Gail nodded. 

"1534. We get a request from 1504 for a back up at 17th Street Madison Avenue. Are you available?" 

"This is 1534. We're responding." Officer Shaw tossed his half eaten sandwich in the trash can. He stepped on the gas and sped off to the location.

* * *

"What's happening here?" asked Officer Shaw once they got out of the car. Gail followed him. 

"There's a report of a gun shot. We just got here." Officer Williams explained as Dov who was standing next to her nodded at Gail. 

"Okay. I'll go check at the back. Peck, come with me." Gail nodded to follow Officer Shaw. Officer Williams instructed Dov to stay behind her and kept alert as they walked to the front door. 

The back door was locked but was easily kicked open by Officer Shaw as they continued to search the house. 

"Peck, check that section. I'll be checking that section." Officer Shaw pointed to the main bedroom. 

"Yes Sir." Gail went to check in the kitchen and saw Dov standing by at the end of the stairs. 

"Epstein, Peck. Guard the door. We're checking the first floor. Don't let anybody out." Officer Williams ordered. 

"Hey." Dov said as he looked around. 

Gail didn't say anything. She knew Dov didn't really like her because she was a Peck. He thought Gail had the privilege being a Peck. 

Officer Williams and Officer Shaw were coming down the stairs. "We found a body upstairs and already informed dispatch. Both of you need to contain the perimeter. Make sure no one goes in and out. Go!" Officer Shaw gave the order which they obeyed. 

A few more squad cars pulled up to block the street and people were starting to gather to take pictures and to find out what was going on. Detective Barber, one of the homicide detectives in 15 Division got there ten minutes later. It was getting crowded. 

"If I didn't know you were a doctor I'd say you were stalking me." Gail said as soon as she saw Holly walking toward her. 

Holly smiled, thinking of a clever answer. "I am stalking you because you're always there where I'm going. Where's the body?" 

"It's inside the building." Gail said as she watched Holly ducked under the yellow tape. 

"Thanks." Gail nodded and turned back to secure the perimeter. 

After about fifteen minutes, Holly walked out while talking to Detective Barber. "I need to examine the body in my lab, run a few tests before I can confirm anything." 

"Alright. Let us know as soon as you find anything. Thanks doctor." Detective Barber went back inside. 

"Officer Peck, I'm going back to the lab." Holly said to Gail but nodded at Dov who was staring at her. 

"Doctor Stewart, I'm going to just stand here for another couple of hours." Gail said. 

"Officer, can I talk to you for a second, in private?" Holly said when she realised Dov was still staring at them. 

Gail turned to look at Dov. "Sure." Gail followed Holly to her car. 

Holly put all her stuff in the back seat. She went over to the passenger side and took out what Gail could see was another lunchbox. 

"Here." Holly took it out. 

Gail grinned when she saw what was in Holly's hand. Cheese puffs. 

"I was getting coffee when I got the call. I saw a convenient store across the street so I checked it out. Turned out they do sell cheese puffs." Holly smiled while handed it to Gail. 

"Thanks. Does this mean I owe you dinner or something?" Gail asked, curious. 

"Um I don't know. You tell me." Holly shrugged. She excused herself to go back to the morgue. 

Gail went to her car and put the cheese puffs on her seat and went back to stand where she was told to. Dov who were staring at them was getting curious. 

"What was that?" Dov asked. 

"It's none of your business." Gail was going to eat that cheese puffs when she got back to the station. It was a good day.

* * *

At night 

Holly was just finished showered when she heard her phone buzzed. She saw a text message coming in. She opened it and smiled instantly when she saw who the sender was. 

_The Girl in the Closet: Thanks for the cheese puffs_. 

_Lunchbox: My pleasure_. 

_The Girl in the Closet: So from now on I'll be expecting cheese puffs from you every once in a while_. 

_Lunchbox: Lol. Not a problem. I'll keep some in my office down at the morgue. You could come down if you crave some_. 

_The Girl in the Closet: That's a cunning way to make me go down to the morgue_. 

_Lunchbox: Lol. Whatever, you owe me dinner_. 

_The Girl in the Closet: I thought it was up to me?_

_Lunchbox: Nope. You thought wrong._

_The Girl in the Closet: I knew it wasn't for free!_

_Lunchbox: Lol_._ It's too late to back out now_. 

_The Girl in the Closet: Fine! Do you want to go somewhere? Be specific._

_Lunchbox: San Francisco?_

_The Girl in the Closet: Really? Why don't you ask if we could go to the moon instead?_

_Lunchbox: Lol. Where do you want to take me?_

_The Girl in the Closet: I don't know. Penny?_

_Lunchbox: That's a cunning way to avoid going to a real dinner._

_The Girl in the Closet: Nah. I'm saving up money to fly you to San Francisco._

_Lunchbox: Lol. What about if we meet tomorrow after your shift ends?_

_The Girl in the Closet: For what?_

_Lunchbox: We could go for a dinner tomorrow or just hang out.  
__  
_

Gail looked at Holly's last text message. She was nervous but it was normal for two friends to hang out right? She took her time to reply. 

_The Girl in the Closet: Sure. We should hang out._

_Lunchbox: Okay. Maybe I'll take you to the batting cage._

_The Girl in the Closet: What? Batting cage? No I don't do sport._

_Lunchbox: Come on. It will be fun!_

_The Girl in the Closet: Says you!_

_Lunchbox: Are we going or not?_

_The Girl in the Closet: Okay. Fine! If I hurt myself, I'll blame you!_

_Lunchbox: Don't worry. I'm a doctor._

_The Girl in the Closet: Yeah. You're a dead people doctor, Holly!_

_Lunchbox: Still I'm perfectly capable of treating injuries. Plus, I went to med school._

_The Girl in the Closet: Yeah. Yeah. I believe you. I gotta go to sleep. Early shift tomorrow._

_Lunchbox: Okay. Sweet dream, Gail._

_The Girl in the Closet: You too. See you tomorrow._

_Lunchbox: Wait! What time does your shift ends?_

_The Girl in the Closet: At 5 nerd._

Holly looked at Gail's text message and smiled. She didn't know what was happening but she surely enjoyed what was happening now.


	5. Chapter 5

I think it is time Golly gets a little closer. Thank you for reading and your kind reviews. I appreciated it. Enjoy :) 

Disclaimer: I love Gail Peck and Holly Stewart. I do not own Rookie Blue or any of its amazing characters. 

Chapter 5 

"This is Kevin Ford. He is a suspect in a murder case a few months ago. We couldn't convict him to murder because we never found the murder weapon. We believe he hid it before the cops got to him. We also believe that he has hidden something else, drugs. We have uniforms keeping an eye on him. What I need you to do is to make the rounds on the places that could be where he hid them." Detective Barber said as he handed the rookies two pieces of paper that had all the information. 

"If you see him immediately call for back up. Peck and Epstein, you ride together. Nash and McNally, you're together." He said as he walked out of his office. Diaz handed the paper to Dov. "Diaz, come with me." 

"Let's move!" He shouted over his shoulder.

* * *

"I'll drive." Dov said as he extended his hand to get the car keys from Gail. 

"I have the keys so I'll drive." Gail said as she unlocked the car and got in. 

"This is not your car." Dov got in the car but not without complaining. 

"We should go to the nearest address first." Dov said as he read the list. They had like five addresses in the list. 

"What's the address?" Gail asked. 

Dov read the address. "It's an abandoned house." He said. "This place has been monitored since two months ago but there's nothing that indicates he will going to come back here again." He added as he read the notes that came with the addresses. 

"But it's worth a shot. The safest place is the most unexpected ones. You never know." Gail shrugged. 

In one hour they managed to check on two addresses but nothing. They were at the third address in their lists. Gail yawned. 

"I have always wanted to be a cop." Dov said as they parked their car a bit farther from the building. "I want to help people, you know catch bad guys." 

"And make this world a better place?" Gail chipped in. "Yeah. That sounds familiar." 

Dov looked at Gail. He didn't like her tone one bit. 

"What about you?" he asked Gail, glancing at her. 

Gail didn't immediately answer him. "It doesn't matter. I'm here, that's what matters." Gail said, lazily. She didn't really feel like chit chatting. 

They knew each other from the academy but weren't so close. They were always in the same group because they were in the same circle of friends. They would talk but when it was only the two of them, it became quiet and awkward. 

"It doesn't matter to you but it does matter to other people that you're here?" asked Dov. 

"What are you implying?" asked Gail knowing exactly what Dov meant. "If you have something to say, just say it. You don't have to beat around the bush." 

"I'm not implying anything. I was just trying to make a conversation." Dov said defending himself. 

"There's a movement." Gail said. There was a man standing at the front door of the building. 

"Where are you going?" Gail said as she noticed Dov unbuckled his seat belt. 

"I want to look closer." Gail stopped him. 

"No. We wait. We don't know if it is him." Gail disagreed. "God. Why do you always have to rush?" 

Dov looked at Gail. "What do you mean?" 

"We stay here and we wait. You can inform Chris but that's it." Gail said. Dov shook his head. 

"What if he's the one we're looking for? And we lose him?" He argued. 

"Look." Gail took the paper out of Dov's hand. "There's a description of him in here. Does that guy looks like the one we're looking for? If he sees us we could screw it." 

Dov frowned at the paper then looked up at Gail. 

"You've been holding that paper." Gail said. 

Dov took out his phone and phoned Chris. "There's a guy but we're not sure if it is him. He looks different than the one in the photo." Dov nodded. "Yes. We'll do that." He hung up. 

"He told us to stay put." Gail gave Dov 'I told you so' look. 

"What did you mean I always rush things? You don't think I can do my job?" Dov asked, offended. 

"That is not what I meant." Gail wondered where did he get that idea from. "You always go jump head first. It's like you're too eager to prove to people that you're good." 

"How is that a bad thing? Oh yeah. I bet you don't have to prove to people that you're good because your last name is Peck!" Dov said. He was a little surprised when those words came out of his mouth. 

"You don't know me so you don't get to judge me! You know what? I'm not having this conversation with you anymore." Gail decided it was time to shut up. She almost lost it. 

They both sat quietly in the car. The man they were watching was nowhere to be seen. 

"Where did he go?" Gail asked. 

"I don't know. I don't see him." Dov almost got out of the car when dispatch radioed. 

"1504. A suspect of a murder investigation was seen at 27th Street. An immediate back up requested."

They both looked at each other. The man wasn't the one they were looking for. "That is one of the addresses Traci and Andy were supposed to check out."

"This is 1504. We're responding." Gail started the ignition and sped off.

* * *

"Hey. You heard?" Dov asked out of nowhere. He sat on the chair next to Chris. They managed to catch the guy, the gun and his drugs. It was a long day but it was a good day. 

"Heard what?" Chris asked, eyebrow raised. 

"Superintendant Peck is coming to visit." Dov almost whispered it to Chris. 

Chris looked a little lost. "So? Wait. Where did you hear that?" 

"I heard they talked about it in the pantry. I just thought you wanted to know. Do you think Gail knows?" Dov asked again. 

Chris shrugged. "I don't know. Why don't you ask her?" He went back writing something in his notebook. 

"What are you doing?" Dov asked. 

"I'm just adding up notes in my earlier report." Chris said. 

"Oh hey Gail!" Chris waved when he saw Gail walked passed in front of his desk. Gail just raised her hand. 

"Snob." Dov muttered. Chris turned at him and laughed. 

"She isn't a snob." Chris crossed his arms. "What happened?" 

Dov looked at Chris, acting dumb. "What do you mean?" 

"Well I don't know. You sound like you have something against her." Chris said. 

"No I don't have anything against her." 

"Are you sure?" Chris asked again, somehow he didn't believe Dov. "Did something happen this morning?" 

Dov shook his head. "No." 

"Look. I don't know Gail personally but Dov, she was in the academy with us. You know she is good. She deserved to be here as much as you and I deserved to be here. It doesn't matter if she is a Peck. It doesn't matter that I came from a small village. It doesn't matter your parents are hippies." Chris said. 

"What I'm trying to say is it isn't her fault that she was born a Peck. We are who we are. We don't judge. This isn't like you." Chris said, patting Dov's shoulder. 

"I never said it's because she's a Peck." Dov tried to convince Chris which received a knowing look from Chris. 

The phone on the desk rang and Chris picked it up immediately. "Officer Diaz." He nodded a few times and said, "Yes, Sir. I'll be there in five." He hung up the phone then stood up. 

"I have to go to the booking. They need help." He looked at Dov who was staring at Staff-Sergeant Best's office. He was talking to Gail. 

"We're all deserved to be here Dov." He gave Dov a nod then left.

* * *

Gail sat down on her chair and took out her phone from her pocket. She searched for a contact list and hit a text button. 

_The Girl in the Closet: Just wanted to say hey_

Gail put down her phone after she hit the send button and waited for a reply. Her mother was coming to the station later today so she wouldn't be able to go hang out with Holly. After a few minutes, she received a beep telling her she got a message. 

_Lunchbox: Hey, what's up?_

_The Girl in the Closet: Superintendant Peck is coming to the station later today._

_Lunchbox: Personal or work related?_

_The Girl in the Closet: She just received the Appreciation Award and wanted to do the acceptance speech here._

_Lunchbox: Oh. Rain check?_

Gail looked at Holly's text. She didn't want to take a rain check. She wanted to go bat with Holly, even it meant making herself look like a fool, not spending her time standing next to her mother while she was talking to white shirts or the higher ups or some journalists. It would only make her friends hated her even more. Not that she cared what they thought about her. That would make what Dov thought was true somehow that her mother helped put her through the academy and the only reason she was here was because of her mother's connection and her last name. 

_The Girl in the Closet: I'm afraid so._

_Lunchbox: It's okay. Next time then._

_The Girl in the Closet: Yeah too bad. I was looking forward to get injured in the batting cage._

_Lunchbox: It won't get you killed._

_The Girl in the Closet: Shit happens._

_Lunchbox: Okay. Just putting it out there, you can call me you know._

_The Girl in the Closet: I'll call you next time. See you around._

_Lunchbox: See you around. Have fun._

_Have fun? _Gail snickered. She never had fun when it came to having been around her mother. She put her phone back in her pocket. 

"Why do I have to read this stupid speech?" Gail threw the paper in her hand to her desk. She forgot about this completely until her mother called to remind her about her speech presentation. 

She knew her mother's intention. She wanted Gail to get the attention although she didn't know what good would that be in respect of her career here except getting smirk and annoying looks from her fellow officers. 

"Hey what's wrong? " Chris asked sitting down across the table. 

She sighed. "I have to give this stupid speech for my mother's award acceptance." 

Chris felt pity for Gail. "Anything I can do?" he smiled. 

Gail shook her head. "I just need to rehearse until these words comes out naturally. " 

"Hey Diaz! I need you to do something for me." Detective Swarek called for Chris. 

"Yes Sir." Chris gave Gail his pity smile.

* * *

The function had started like half an hour ago. She kept avoiding her mother and finally standing alone in the car park. She soon found herself walking down the way to Holly's lab. She stood at the door disappointed to see the light was off. _Maybe she's in her office_, Gail thought. She was hoping Holly would still be in her office but it was empty. She took her phone out of her pocket and started looking through her contact's lists. 

_I should set her number on my speed dial list_. She smiled at that thought and leaned against the door. She went to setting and pressed the 'speed dial no. 1' button. 

"Congratulations Holly. You're now officially number one on my speed dial list." Gail said it out loud. 

She was going to call Holly but had a second thought. _Maybe she has something going on tonight now that they take a rain check? That's why she left her office early_, Gail thought as she stared at her phone. She regretted ever texted Holly earlier. Maybe Holly would still be here if she didn't. 

She sighed and closed her eyes. She stayed like that for a longer time. She enjoyed the quietness. Then she pushed herself from the door and started walking. She didn't know where she was going but definitely not back to the function. She decided to take the exit farther from the station to avoid bumping into anyone from the division.

* * *

"Did anybody see Gail?" Superintendent Peck asked, surprising the rookies.

"No we didn't madam." Chris answered. The others shook their heads. 

"And you're Officer?" She raised her eyebrow to Chris. 

"I'm Chris Diaz, madam." Chris smiled proudly. 

"Well If you find her, tell her I'm looking for her. Thank you Craig." Superintendent Peck nodded and turned around and left. 

"I think she's awesome." Chris said. Dov looked at him. "Dude, she just called you Craig." They all laughed. "What? Craig's a good name." 

"Did you guys feel that?" Andy said looking behind her as to make sure the Superintendent was not going to sneak up behind her. They all looked to that direction. 

"That air of authority? Jeez. No wonder Gail is so uptight." Andy finished her sentence. 

"Yeah. Imagine having a mother like that always hot on your heels." Traci shook her head. "Peck or not, I feel sorry for Gail." 

They nodded, agreed to what Traci just said. Dov looked at the Superintendent and glad that he didn't mention he saw Gail already left the station an hour ago. 


	6. Chapter 6

Angela88: I really love that scene. They laugh for real! And Charlotte Sullivan is just so adorable! 

Thank you for reading and reviews. Enjoy :) 

Disclaimer: I love Gail Peck and Holly Stewart. I do not own Rookie Blue or any of its amazing characters. 

Chapter 6 

Holly felt like she was being watched so she looked up to find Gail standing at the door. She studied the blonde in front of her. She looked somehow different. _This is a new side of her I haven't seen before_, _Holly thought_. She leaned back against her chair. Gail had her arms crossed and leaned against the door. Her expression she had on her face was unreadable. Even though what she heard about Gail was something different, she usually found the blonde slightly amused whenever they were together. She figured something must have been bothering Gail. 

"Please come in," Holly said when she was certain Gail wouldn't come in if she didn't invite her in. Gail uncrossed her arms and walked slowly and stopped in the middle of the room. Her eyes wandered around the room like she was looking for something. 

Holly smiled and reached for the top drawer and took something out of the drawer. Cheese puffs. She was looking for her cheese puffs. Gail smiled weakly at Holly when she took it out of the brunette's hand and settled on the sofa by the window. She popped it open. Holly sat back. 

"Hey." Holly said, trying to assess Gail's mood. She didn't want to push unless Gail wanted to tell her what was bothering her. 

"Hey." Gail said, putting the cheese puffs one by one into her mouths and chewed slowly, taking her time. She loved this place. 

Holly put her pen down on the table and crossed her arms. She didn't want to come across as being nosy but if Gail was here, she probably wouldn't mind if she asked. She certainly didn't want to ask the wrong questions. 

"I came by your lab yesterday." Gail broke the silence. 

Holly pushed up her glasses and leaned forward. "I'm sorry if you were looking for me. Our plan was cancelled so I took off early. Why didn't you call me?" 

Gail shook her head and waved her hand saying it didn't matter. "I was hoping you were there but you weren't. It's not a big deal." Gail munched on her cheese puffs. 

"I didn't call because I thought you had other plans." Gail added. 

"Is everything okay?" Holly hesitated and a little bit worried. 

Gail nodded but said nothing to help eased Holly's worry. Holly had some urgent reports she needed to write but that could wait. Holly stood up and went to sit next to the blonde. "I'm here if you feel like talking and I'm still here if you don't feel like talking." Holly reached for the cheese puffs and put one into her mouth. Gail turned sideways to look at her. 

"This is MY cheese puffs." Gail said, emphasizing at the word 'my'. 

"I bought it." Holly retorted, smiling. Gail snorted. "This is good but why don't we grab a real and healthy food after work?" 

"Are you trying to bribe me with food?" Gail asked. Holly shrugged. 

"That sounds good to me." Gail said after a moment, still not willing to talk. 

Holly thought that maybe Gail would feel more comfortable talking over food. A different environment surely makes people feel more comfortable to open up. Her thoughts were interrupted when Gail's phone rang. Gail ignored it. 

"Are you going to get that?" asked Holly. 

"It's probably Andy looking for me. I'm supposed to start my shift in five minutes." Gail reached for her phone in her pocket and answered it. "I'm coming." She said then put the phone back in her pocket. 

Gail stood up and looked down at Holly. "Your treat?" 

Holly nodded. "My treat. Don't be late." She watched Gail walked out of her office and shook her head. Her mind was already making a list of places where she could take Gail for dinner later as she sat back in her chair and started writing her reports.

* * *

She had hell this morning for being MIA and missing her mother's acceptance speech last night. She went to a shooting range to blow off steam and spent a few hours there before decided she had enough. Her parents weren't there when she got home, probably were still celebrating. Steve texted to let her know how furious her mother was and reminded her that she had storm coming her way. This morning she intentionally woke up late so she could skip breakfast and avoided all the talk for missing the opportunity to shine. She stopped listening to her mother after five minutes and just nodded when she felt necessary. She was more upset for missing the opportunity to spend time with Holly. Not that her mother cared 

She was getting ready to go out patrol with Andy. 

"Hey where did you go last night?" Andy asked as soon as she got in their squad car. 

"I left early." Gail buckled her seat belt and kept quiet. 

Andy glanced at Gail knowing she wasn't in her best mood today. Gail was just being Gail. She wasn't exactly a happy-go-lucky type and everything brought the mean girl in her. That was what she told Andy when they were in the academy. 

"Your mother was looking for you. Guess what she called Chris?" Andy was trying to make a light conversation. She felt weird sitting in the car for hours and not talking. 

"I don't know. What did she call him?" Gail asked, appreciate the effort Andy made. So she tried not to be an ass. 

"She called him Craig. After Chris proudly told her 'I'm Chris Diaz, madam'." They both laughed. "And Chris thinks she is awesome." 

"That's my mother. She never paid attention to anything that isn't important to her." Gail shook her head. 

"1534. We got a 911 call for a noise complaint at 32nd Street . Are you available?" 

"This is 1534. We're on our way." 

"Copy that 1534." Dispatch on the other line replied.

* * *

"Sir, we need you to calm down." Andy tried to calm one of the guys down. Gail was holding the other guy down, clearly annoyed at this pointless fighting. "What's going on here?" 

"She's my wife!" The guy Andy tried to talk to shouted. 

"She isn't your wife anymore! You divorced her!" The other man Gail was holding shouted. 

The woman, the subject of this whole ridiculous fighting was sobbing behind Gail. 

"Look. If both of you won't calm down, we have to bring you to the station. It's really not worth it." Gail said. She was hoping they could settle here and avoid getting through all the booking process and paperwork. 

"I'll calm down but he needs to take his hands off my wife!" The man yelled. Andy rolled her eyes. She figured they needed to bring them back to the station. Spending a day or two in the cell would probably shut them up or not. 

"Sir we need to take you both in." Andy said while directing one of the guys to the door. 

"For what?! I didn't do anything!" He shouted and trying to turn to look at Andy. 

"Sir, we got a 911 call for a noise complaint. Unless you both keep your voices down and settle this like an adult, we will have to take you both to the station." Gail explained. 

"Noisy neighbours!" He shouted again and struggled to break free from Andy's grip on him. 

"Hey! Okay. That's it. Let's go." Andy had had enough. 

"Will?" The woman finally spoke. Gail had thought the cat probably ate her tongue because she had been quiet since they got here. 

The guy named Will turned to look at her. "Don't worry honey. I'll be fine." 

"Andy, are we going to put them in the car together?" Gail asked. 

"We don't have a choice." Andy shrugged while opening the door to push the guy inside. 

"This is going to be a long ride." Gail said while pushing the other guy in. They immediately exchanged insults. Gail and Andy couldn't help rolling their eyes when they heard the fight started all over again. 

The woman was still sobbing when they left the house.

* * *

"Urgh! That was the most annoying car ride I've ever had!" Gail groaned, relief she didn't need to hear them anymore. She almost gave each of them a smack on the head. "If I had to listen to them one more second, I'm pretty sure my ears would bleed." 

Andy sat next to her. They just finished processing them. They got to spend two days in the cell. 

"Oh my God yeah! They couldn't even stop shouting even for one second." They had to be handcuffed while in the car so they wouldn't try to kill each other. 

"Hey Traci. I haven't seen you all day." Andy greeted Traci when Traci took her seat. 

"It's a busy day. They busted a grow up earlier this morning and they needed more uniform to clear the plants so the forensics can start processing the scene." Traci explained. 

"To clear plants? That doesn't sound like fun." Gail said, yawned. 

Traci smirked. "No it doesn't but things get a little more interesting. They found a body in one of the barrels. So it is now a possible homicide and the guy who was there just to buy some dope, so he said, is now the prime suspect." 

"But you look super happy for just cleaning up plants." Gail noticed Traci couldn't contain her smile. 

Traci chuckled. "You have good eyes. Detective Swarek offered me to stand in the interrogation room. Maybe I can learn a thing or two." 

"That's cool." Andy said. "Maybe you can be a detective one day." Traci gave that a thought and shrugged. "Why not." 

"That's great!" Chris and Dov joined them. "I wish I had that opportunity." Dov said. "We're on desk duty today." 

Gail's phone rang and she smiled almost instantly when she saw who the caller was. 

"Hellooo." Gail's change of tone brought their attentions to her. She turned her back to them so they couldn't hear her conversation. 

"I'm already at the station. It's been a long day but I think I could get off early." Gail nodded to what she was listening to. Her smile never left her face. She felt a little better than she was this morning. 

"May I ask where are we going?" Gail was so into the conversation she didn't realise the others had stopped talking. 

"What about a dress code? Should I wear something fancy? Do I need to wear a dress?" She whispered. 

"You don't really think that." Gail laughed to her phone. "Thank you for the compliment. I hardly get one these days." 

Gail glanced at her watch. "I get off at four." 

"Okay. I'll come down to the morgue." She was giggling and laughing. 

"Okay. I see you later." She ended the call and turned around only to find all four sets of eyes were fixed on her. Her smile disappeared instantly and was replaced by a cold, "What?" 

The others were smiling and shaking their heads then pretended to continue their conversation. She glanced at her watch again and couldn't stop smiling. In thirty minutes she would go out to a dinner with Holly. 


	7. Chapter 7

gp21: This chapter is slightly longer. I hope you enjoy :)

"An adventurer and Enthusiast of life. I support love, joy and all things delicious." – That's what Aliyah described herself on twitter. :) 

Thank you for reading and your kind reviews. Enjoy :) 

Disclaimer: I love Gail Peck and Holly Stewart. I do not own Rookie Blue or any of its amazing characters. 

Chapter 7 – 

"Hey Gail! Traci and I are going to the Penny. You want to come?" Andy asked when they were in the locker room. 

"Yeah. I have a very long day! All I want to do is to have a few drinks and then sleep on my comfortable bed at home." Traci sounded tired. Andy looked at her. 

"You sure you want to go Trace? You can just go home." Andy said. "I really don't mind." 

Traci gave it a thought then shrugged. "I'm tired but I want to have a drink with my buddies, Andy and Gail!" Gail and Andy looked at each other then back to Traci. She sounded like she was drunk. 

"Are you okay Traci? Did cleaning up those plants make you high?" Gail smirked. Traci wasn't exactly a happy-go-lucky girl but she wasn't an uptight girl either. 

Traci laughed. "No. I'm just enjoying life." 

"I have a plan. Sorry." Gail said, changing her uniform into her usual clothes. She sat down to tie her boots and expecting questions from her friends. 

Both Traci and Andy smiled knowingly. "Does this have anything to do with the phone call you received earlier?" They asked, almost instantaneously. 

"Yes." Gail said closing her locker. There was no point denying it. They probably eavesdropped on her conversation. "Have fun at the Penny." She said and walked out. 

"You too!" Gail couldn't help to roll her eyes when she heard them shouted and laughed.

* * *

She was humming some songs and was on her way down to the morgue when she heard someone called her. 

"Gail!" She turned around and saw Dov running towards her. Her mood turned sour all of the sudden so she turned back decided to leave before Dov ruined the remaining of her jolly mood. 

"Gail, wait! Can I talk to you for a second?" Dov said as soon as he got closer. Gail ignored him. 

"Look. I want to..." 

Gail turned around to look at Dov. "I'm just going to be honest with you. I'm not going to waste my precious time standing here listening to you complaining and whining about something that has gone wrong in your life. I'm not interested to listen to whatever you have to say. Find someone else you can blame all your problems on." She said as she turned around leaving Dov frustrated. 

"I'm not." Dov was still trying to explain. 

"Save it." 

"We're going to have to talk about this Gail!" She shook her head and kept on walking.

* * *

"So where are we going?" Gail asked when she was at Holly's office. 

"I'm not going to tell so you can stop asking me." Holly smiled. "It's a surprise." 

"At least can you tell me if what I'm wearing is okay?" Gail said and started to turn around in circle. "Will I embarrass you?" Holly laughed. _Gail must have been feeling a lot better, Holly thought_. 

"You look great as always Gail. We're not going to someplace fancy." Holly cleaned up her desk but took a look to see what Gail was wearing. She was in her usual shirt, leather pants to match with her boots which what Holly loved. 

"You're a cheapskate then." Gail accused. Holly looked up and gave Gail a stare which Gail ignored. 

"I saw you have lots of files on your desk this morning." Gail said as she watched Holly's neat office. Her desk didn't look messy as it was this morning. "You sure you can leave early? I don't mind waiting as long as they don't call you when we're having dinner." 

"Yes I'm sure. I've done the report and everything is in order. There is no reason for them to call me unless someone dies." She wouldn't leave if things weren't in order. She didn't want them to call her and interrupted things. 

"Are we ready to go?" Holly asked. 

"I'm ready whenever you are. After you." Gail gestured for Holly to go out first and then followed her out.

* * *

"Where are we going?" Gail asked. She was looking out the window, scanning the street. Something she was accustomed to since she became a cop. Something she was trained to do even before she was a cop. 

"Do you know that's the third time you ask in less than five minutes?" Holly's eyes never left the road. "You're distracting me." 

"I'm sorry for not keeping tabs. I'm too busy worrying about a possible kidnapping of a police officer by a forensic pathologist." Gail said. Holly gave Gail her sideways smile that Gail thought was sweet. 

"Somehow I doubt you will easily get kidnapped. You are capable of taking care of yourself, Gail Peck." Holly said. 

"You bet I do but I'm powerless against the brilliant forensic pathologist, one called Doctor Holly Stewart." Gail was leaning against the door to look at Holly. _She can take me anywhere she wants to, Gail said._

Holly laughed. "Like I told you million times already, you will know when we get there." 

Gail raised her case. She turned on the radio and kept changing the channel. 

"Besides I don't have to kidnap you because you will come with me willingly." Holly smirked. 

Gail leaned back on her seat and crossed her arms. "Is that so?" 

Holly nodded. "Are you telling me that's not the case?" 

"Whatever." That was what Gail could come up with. She saw Holly smirked. 

Gail was too occupied in her own thoughts when she heard Holly said, "We're almost there." 

"High Park Toronto?" Gail said loudly as she read the sign at the entrance. She looked at Holly. "Why are we at the park?" Gail asked. 

Holly drove the car into the parking lot and turned off the ignition ignoring Gail completely. "Let's go." They both got out of the car. 

"Are you ignoring me?" 

"Yes." 

"Dinner at the park? How very weird of you." Gail said as she stood behind Holly who was taking stuff out from the back seat. 

"Here. Help me carry these." Holly handed Gail what looked like their dinner. 

"I love food but don't you think this is too much for the two of us?" Gail asked Holly while they walked to the park bench. She had her hands full, so was Holly. 

"I didn't know what you like so I just ordered what I thought you would like." Holly shrugged. "I forgot to ask you. By the time I remembered, it was already late." 

"Over there." Holly pointed to an empty table next to a big tree. 

"It looks like we're alone here." Gail said looking at her surroundings, processing every detail. There were two park rangers stationed at the far corner and a few empty benches. 

"It looks like it. It usually packed with visitors. We should come here during spring. Do you know they have cherry trees also known as Sakura trees here? Cherry blossoms are so beautiful and they are actually edible." Holly said. "We can do a lot of other stuff too. They have hiking trails, sport facilities, a beautiful lakefront. They even have a zoo." 

"You've been here before?" Gail asked, putting down their dinner on the table. She must had been here before if she knew that much. 

"Yeah. I've been here a couple of times." Holly unpacked the food and said, "I hope there's one you like." Holly said looking at all the food she had ordered, Pasta, chicken breast, steak and Ice wine. 

Gail raised her eyebrows looking at all the food in front of her. "We have to start eating if we want to finish all of these before midnight. Can I say wow I've never seen so many foods on my table before?" 

Holly chuckled. "We don't have to. Any leftovers will be my tomorrow's lunch." 

"Correction. Any leftovers will be our tomorrow's lunch." Gail looked around. This was actually perfect. "Holly?" 

"Yeah?" Holly looked up. 

"Thank you for this." Gail said with a tight lip smile. 

"I don't know about you but I'm starving." Holly said reaching for the food. She had to skip lunch in order to finish up her reports. 

It was getting dark and the lights were turned on but it was still dark to even see the food. "It's getting dark." Gail stated the obvious. 

"Oh look. We're not the only couple here." Gail gestured to the man and woman walking to another empty park bench not far from them. 

"Yeah. We're not the only couple here." Holly smiled when she said it. Gail realised what she had said and avoided Holly's gaze. 

"And they have candles. How very romantic of them." Gail said as they watched the guy taking out the candles from a box and put it on the table. "That sure would be helpful." 

"And I'm a terrible planner. I didn't think to bring candles. I thought the light from the poles would be enough." Holly said still watching the couple. 

"That can be arranged." Gail said standing up. When Holly turned back to their table, Gail was already on her way to the couple's table. 

"Gail?" Holly called for her. Gail waved her hand and gestured Holly to stay. Holly looked on and she was surprised to see Gail was signing with the couple. Gail turned around a few times and Holly suspected she was the subject in that conversation as the couple also glanced at her. After a few minutes, Gail walked back to her with a smile on her face and candle in her hand. 

"You're insane. You know that right?" Holly laughed when Gail sat back down across from her. 

"Tell me something I don't know Holly." Gail struck a match she got from the couple and lit the candle. Her hands were protecting the candle from the wind. 

"I think you're amazing." Holly said, eyeing Gail. 

"Holly, if you think I'm amazing, clearly you don't know me." Gail said. Sadly Holly didn't know much about her. 

"Well it's a good thing that I'm not going anywhere and we have plenty of time for that." Holly smiled. Gail's face changed. 

"I don't know if it is Holly. I'm not amazing. I'm not a lot of things. I'm not easy going. I'm not even friendly. I'm not really down to earth but I'm a very loyal person." Gail said suddenly. Her eyes were fixed on the candle. "I don't have a lot of friends. I'm bad at keeping friendship or relationship." 

"Loyalty. That's a very hard quality to find." Holly said, sensing Gail's sudden mood change. 

"No you don't understand. I screw things up." She thought it was better for Holly to know about this now than later. 

Gail was silent, looking down at the forgotten food. "Holly, I'm like a cat. I'm good at climbing trees but the minute I got up there, I don't know what to do. I want to get down but I don't know how to do that. So I create an emergency situation to get out of it." 

Holly squinted. Gail was using a cat and a tree metaphor. "Of the tree?" Holly asked, a bit puzzled. 

"Of relationships." Gail corrected her. 

Holly nodded. _So she is trying to tell me that she may walk out if thing goes wrong between us, Holly thought. _But Holly was ready to take that risk. Gail was worth it but first she needed to convince Gail that what they had or what they would have in the future was worth it. 

"Gail, do you want to know what I think?" Holly said, hoping that Gail would look at her in the eyes. "I think that everyone is pretty messed up in their own way. Nobody is perfect. So please don't talk like you are some kind of a monster because you're not." 

"I don't know what I want. I didn't even know if I wanted to be a cop. I was here because that what was expected from me but now." Gail stopped. "But now I think I like being a cop. I know I can be a good cop, Holly." Gail looked up. Holly could see a glimmer in Gail's eyes. "I can be better." 

"Do you know that I used to shoplift when I was young?" Gail asked. Holly shook her head. "I left that part when I filled up my application." Gail shrugged. "I guess being a Peck has its perk. They don't do a thorough background check or maybe it wasn't there. If it wasn't there in the record, my mother probably did something to cover it up. That is something she would do." 

"But some people they just have to ruin it. They think I don't deserve to be here. That the only reason I'm here is because of my last name. If I wasn't good enough, I wouldn't be here." There was sadness in her voice. 

"Your friends at the division?" Holly asked. Holly could relate when it came to having to compete for something although what Gail had been going through was a lot different than her experience. Gail nodded. 

"There is nothing you can do about it if that is what they have set their mind to. The important thing is you know why you are here. Even if you want to prove that you can do better or even great, let it be because you want to do it, not because of them. As for your mother, she would sooner or later realise that her daughter is a good cop and going to be a great one." 

"I guess you're right." Gail sighed. She tried not to pay attention to this kind of things. It was exhausting. 

"Sometimes maybe you are a little mysterious. You need to let people you care knows that you care." Holly said, speaking her mind. She thought Gail kept her emotions to herself that it was impossible for people around her to see her for who she was. "I'm sure they will appreciate it." 

"I really want to get to know you Gail." Holly said, watching Gail's reaction. 

Gail was avoiding eye contact with Holly and was silent. She closed her eyes and let out a heavy breath. "And I don't want to wake up one day and nobody knows me." She finally looked up to meet Holly's eyes. She could see Holly was really honest and sincere when she said she wanted to get to know her. Gail had been putting her defences up with a steel wall since her last relationship failed. Even before that, she hardly opened up to anyone. 

"I'm very happy to hear that." Holly said reaching for Gail's hand on the table. 

"I don't want to rush. I mean I don't want to screw this up." Gail said clearly lacking confidence. 

Holly nodded. "Okay we will take this nice and slow." She squeezed Gail's hand and never wanted to let them go. Gail was smiling and Holly couldn't understand how an amazing person like Gail could be badly misunderstood. 

Holly was too occupied with her own thoughts when Gail's chuckle brought her back to reality. Then she realised Gail's eyes were not on her but to the couple behind them. The couple was signing with Gail and Gail was shaking her head and laughing. She couldn't help but asked. 

"What did they say?" Holly asked curious. 

"They congratulate me." Gail didn't elaborate. 

"For what?" Holly had to ask again. Gail looked embarrassed. 

"Well, when I came over to their table for the candle, they refused to give me even when I offered them ten dollars for it." Gail smiled, looked hesitated to continue. 

"And?" Holly encouraged her. Gail swallowed hard. 

"So I told them this romantic dinner at the park is my way of winning you back after my idiotic behavior that made you walked away and this is my last chance because you're flying to San Francisco in two weeks." Gail added. 

Holly nodded with her trademark sideways smile. 

"They see that we're laughing and holding hands they think I finally win you back." Gail laughed softly. 

"That is a very interesting cover story." Holly didn't realise she was still holding Gail's hand if Gail didn't mention it. She gazed down at their hands, entwined together on the table. There was a stark contrast between her tanned-skin and Gail's pale-white skin but somehow they looked good together. Gail noticed where Holly had been staring at. Feeling Gail's eyes on her, Holly looked up. 

"They are on their tenth anniversary." Gail added, liking how warm Holly's hand in hers. "He said I ruined their perfect and romantic dinner but it's worth it if you would forgive me." 

Holly laughed. She turned back to look at the couple and they waved. She waved back. "Yeah you totally ruined their anniversary dinner by stealing one of their candles." She gave Gail's hand a squeeze. "But he's right. It's worth it." 

Holly held Gail's hand until the blonde had to take her hands back to sign with the couple. 

"What did you say?" Holly asked. 

"I said thank you and they remind me the food is getting cold." They both laughed. 

"Okay. Bon apetite!" Holly said. 

"This is good. Where did you order this?" Gail asked. She ate a mouthful of pasta. Holly laughed at Gail's table manners. 

"A restaurant called The Downtown, near my apartment." Holly said. "They actually just opened early this year." 

Gail raised her eyebrows. _It's near Holly's apartment? She had an idea_. 

"Hey I still owe you dinner right?" Gail asked, suddenly remembered about it. Holly nodded because her mouth was full. 

"How about I take you to dinner there?" Gail suggested. 

Holly shook her head. "No. I want you to pick your own place. Take me where you usually eat." 

Gail nodded. She had a few places she loved to go with Holly. She looked at Holly and chuckled. "Hey you have something on your face." Gail pointed to her chin. 

"Where? Here?" Holly asked while her right hand busy looking for a tissue in her bag. 

Gail shook her head and stood up. She leaned forward and wiped the sauce from Holly's chin. "There." 

Holly caught Gail's hand before Gail could withdraw. Her eyes fixed on the red lips in front of her. When she remembered Gail said about taking things slow she let go of Gail's hand. "Thanks." 

Gail sat back down. "You're welcome." Gail took a chunk of chicken breast into her mouth to hide her amusement when she heard Holly let out a heavy breath. 

"What about you?" Gail said as she eyed the now smitten Holly. 

"Oh yeah. Alright. Where do I start?" Holly cleared her throat. 

"Well describe yourself as simple as you can or you can just tell me whatever you want me to know." 

"I'm a doctor, an adventurer and enthusiast of life. I support love, joy and all things delicious." Holly said. "Like this." Holly took a mouthful of pasta into her mouth. 

"I adore your table manners. I get a stare down and 'no man likes a girl who eats like that Gail' warning advice from my mother." 

"Your mother sounds like fun." Holly laughed. 

"So I described myself like a cat. You, on the other hand sounds like a disney princess which is better." Gail said. 

"I like cats." Holly said before Gail could say something that made her depressed or something. Gail looked up to meet Holly's eyes. 

"I like different type of cats. Um different breeds like Tonkinese, Persian, Toyger, Siamese and my favourite the Sphynx or different patterns and colours like spotted or solid or bi – or tri-coloured." Holly bit her lower lip. She knew she was babbling. "I even like difficult, blonde cats, if there is any." 

"Are you saying I'm difficult?" Gail asked stony-faced. 

_Shit Holly. What were you thinking? _"Um that's not what I meant. What I meant was a misunderstood gorgeous blonde cat." 

Gail was serious. She looked at Holly straight in the eye and Holly knew Gail took offence of what she just said. 

"Gail I'm." Holly was about to apologize when Gail was suddenly burst out laughing. Holly raised her eyebrows. Gail caught her. 

"Your face. You look so serious. Chill out." 

"Well you looked so serious. I thought you took offence about what I just said." Holly said, relief to know Gail was just joking. 

"Nah. I wouldn't be mad at you for now. You still have a lot of things to tell me. I'll decide whether I should be mad at you or not after we're done." 

"So I've lived here my whole life. What about you?" Gail asked, curious about the brunette's life story. From the way she described herself, Gail knew Holly was nothing like her. 

"I previously live in Vancouver before I took this job. Doctor Peterson told me beforehand that he was going to accept the job offer he received in Boston. He told me he would love for me to be his successor and he would write a recommendation letter for me." Holly explained. "I wasn't sure I would get this job because there were a few others who applied for this job. It was tough." Holly added. 

"You're a brilliant doctor Holly. Of course you'd get the job." Gail thought it was a no-brainer. 

Holly smiled. "Yeah well. I did get the offer but at the same time I got another offer from the application I sent. It was in a different city but after long consideration, I chose to be here. I'm glad I made the right call." 

"The People of Toronto and the police officers from 15 Division are so lucky and grateful that you made the right call to serve and offer your specialty to help solve crimes and put the bad guys behind bars and thus make Toronto the better place to live." _Especially me, Gail thought_. 

Holly laughed. "Hey don't say it like that. I just do what I have to do but it is you, police officers that have greater risk, constantly putting yourself in the front line protecting and serving the people of Toronto. You guys are brave to go out there." 

"What about your life before that?" Gail was intrigue. 

Holly stopped eating and stared into the sky. "I've been to a few different places. I love to see and learn new things. It's always a whole new experience whenever I go from one place to another. I can't seem to stay put in one place long enough I guess." 

_Well I hope you can stay here long enough,_ Gail thought as she watched Holly telling her life story. Gail wasn't the kind who easily gets fascinated on someone's life story. She hardly paid attention but not this time. 

"How long are you planning to stay here?" Gail asked, wary if Holly staying here was only on a short-term basis. 

Holly smiled. "I wasn't planning on staying here long enough but I found a reason that makes me want to spend the rest of my life here." 

_The probability you are the reason is pretty high, Gail_. Gail chuckled at that thought. Holly noticed. 

"I love the People of Toronto." 

"Me too." 

They were interrupted by the park ranger. "Excuse me ladies. I'm sorry for interrupting. I just wanted to remind you that the park will be closed in thirty minutes." 

They both glanced at their watches. Gail noticed the couple was gone. "Oh thanks. We lost track of time." Holly said, slightly embarrassed. 

The guard waved his hand saying he didn't mind. "I hope you guys enjoyed your time at the park. Please come again." They watched the guard went back to his station and the other was ready to make his rounds. 

"Time flies when you're having fun." Gail said. She was hoping they could stay a little longer. "Maybe we should come during spring, to see those beautiful cherry blossoms you mentioned earlier." 

"If you're serious, we should. The best time is during late April until early May." Holly finished up the last bit on her plate then started packing up. 

"Well here's our lunch for tomorrow." They had plenty of leftovers. They split it up and made a lunch date for tomorrow. 

They waved at the rangers as they walking out to the parking lot.

* * *

"Here we go." Holly said as she stopped the car in front of Gail's house. She took a look at the house of the famous Peck family in the police force. "I hope you had fun today." 

"I did. I had fun." Gail moved to open the door but turned to Holly all of the sudden. 

Gail reached for Holly's face and kissed her on the lips. She closed her eyes as she felt Holly's soft lips on hers was exactly how she remembered when they were kissing for the first time. She could see Holly was surprised on her sudden move but only for a second because she could feel Holly returning the kiss. She lingered just long enough and withdrew only to get disapproval groan from Holly. 

"Now we're even." Gail said, enjoying every minute of it. She had that wicked smile on her face. 

Holly laughed when she realised what Gail meant. It was a pay back when she kissed Gail in her closet the first time they met. She had caught the blonde off guard. "That's just mean." 

"Thanks for everything Holly. The dinner was romantic and perfect. I loved it." Gail said. 

"You're welcome. I'll see you tomorrow." They said goodbyes. 

Gail watched as the car slowly drove off. She only turned when the car was out of sight. She saw the light in her mother's office was still on. She walked slowly to the house. One thing she was grateful being a Peck was that she was destined to be a cop. If she wasn't a cop, she wouldn't have met this amazing woman. 


	8. Chapter 8

Thank you for reading. Enjoy :) 

Disclaimer: I love Gail Peck and Holly Stewart. I do not own Rookie Blue or any of its amazing characters. 

Chapter 8 

"Hey Lunchbox." Gail greeted Holly and put down the coffee on Holly's table. She decided to get one for Holly when she stopped by to get hers. "I'm not surprised to see you already bury yourself in your work." She was late. She only had a few minutes to spare before she had to leave. 

Holly shook her head. "That brings back old memories. What happened to first name basis?" 

Gail shrugged. "Lunchbox kind of suits you, don't you think? It has a certain ring to it." She grinned. 

Holly rolled her eyes. "Thanks for the coffee by the way. I really need that." She took a sip and put it back down. "Are we having lunch together today?" 

Gail grimaced. She wanted to but she had a stakeout today. She didn't know when it would be over. Making Holly waited for her didn't sound like a good idea. She bet Holly had a lot to do as well. "Um I'll text you?" Gail said as she walked backwards to the door. Holly nodded. "Be safe." 

"Great. I will." With that, Gail was gone.

* * *

Traci cleared her throat. This was the fourth time in the last fifteen minutes. Gail sighed. Showing a little bit of concern about her friend's wellbeing, Gail had to ask. 

"Something stuck in your throat Traci?" Gail knew Traci was dying to know but Gail wasn't the kind to tell her stories. She didn't want her friends to know just yet although she made a trip down to Holly's lab quite frequent lately. She just didn't know if her friends noticed but she bet they didn't. 

Traci knew Gail wouldn't tell if she didn't ask. She turned and grinned. "So how was it?" Traci looked like a five year old waiting for her mother to give her candies, all smiles and happy face. 

Gail was thinking how to answer that question. Was she comfortable if her friends knew? She loved that they hung out pretty much every day. But could she say they were in a relationship? Was it right to say they were in a relationship? Or maybe it was still in a friendship phase? Or was it something in between? "How was what?" Gail hid her smile. 

Traci snickered. "Oh come on Gail. Don't play dumb. The date you had yesterday? Andy reminded me to ask you. Look." Traci took out her phone out of her pocket and showed Gail Andy's text message. "We both wanted to know." She put it back into her pocket. 

Gail was looking out the window when they heard Detective Barber on the radio. "Anything?" 

"Nothing yet Sir." Gail reported. 

"Okay. Keep your eyes open." Detective Barber said on the other line. 

"Yes sir. Roger that." Gail turned to look at Tracy. "We're on a stakeout." 

"And I bet Andy would demand a full story when we get back to the station." Traci added as soon as they were alone again, ignoring Gail. 

She sighed. "It was great. We had dinner at the park." Gail had to give her something. 

"Isn't that romantic!?" Traci was excited. "Andy would be thrilled! Are you going to tell us who that person is?" That was the thing she had wanted to ask since she saw Gail. 

Gail nodded, decided to play along but left out some major details. "Yes it was very romantic. You should try to go there sometimes. Do you know they have cherry trees also known as Sakura trees there? Cherry blossoms are so beautiful and they are actually edible. You can do a lot of other stuff too. They have hiking trails, sport facilities, a beautiful lakefront. They even have a zoo." Gail quoted Holly. 

"Are you seeing anyone Traci?" Gail asked, trying to change the topic. She turned her attention back to the street. Traci did the same. 

"I'm not seeing anyone at the moment and I know you're avoiding. Are you going to tell me the identity of this person?" Traci asked again. She might need Andy's help to get information out of Gail. She dug into her pocket and took out her phone. She typed a quick text and sent it to Andy. 

Gail turned to look at her. "What are you doing?" she frowned at Traci. 

"I'm sending a text to Andy. I told her you're not telling." Her phone vibrated and a text came in. After a second, she said "She says you will have to tell us later. She's buying us lunch." She shoved her phone back into her pocket. 

Gail groaned. "Why do you have to make a big deal out of it?" asked Gail, not liking her friends' interest in her possible love life. 

"Well it is because not everyone can make Gail Peck happy as a puppy." Traci laughed. "Whoever that person is must be someone interesting." 

Traci's word stuck in her mind. _Was it that obvious?_ She felt different ever since she started her friendship with Holly. She was more open, at least to Holly but she couldn't agree more to what Traci had just said. She was happy.

* * *

"Where's Gail?" Andy asked when she hadn't seen Gail walked in with Traci. The stakeout was unsuccessful. The man they were waiting for was a no-show. She and Chris headed back to the station earlier than Traci and Gail. 

"She took off." Traci answered and took one of the sandwiches out of the box Andy had bought them. 

"What? Traci, I thought I told you to bring her here for questioning!" Andy frustrated. She had texted Traci beforehand. 

Traci shrugged. She tried but Gail said she had other plan. Must be with the same one she had dinner yesterday. "She knew we were going to ask her. So she took off. What do you want me to do? Drag her here?" 

"I can't believe she said no to free lunch." Dov said then took a bite off his sandwich. He was assigned to desk job today. 

"So do any of you know if Gail had any plans after work? I need to talk to her about something." Dov asked. 

"Talk about what?" Andy asked as she chewed her sandwich. "Come to think about it, it seems that you guys haven't really been talking to each other." She eyed Dov who was suddenly looked tense. 

"Spill it!" Traci said. "Come on Dov, man up!" 

"What? I didn't do anything." Dov raised his hands in desperation. 

"Then why is she avoiding you and you avoiding her?" Andy asked. 

Dov shook his head. "I'm not avoiding her. In fact, I've been trying to talk to her. I'm lucky enough if I manage to get her attention. You know how she is like if she hates someone. She avoids you like a plague." 

"Wait. You've been trying to talk to her and she hates you?" Andy looked at Traci but she just shrugged to indicate that she didn't know anything either. 

"Why is everyone look so serious?" Chris put his notebook down on the table. He looked at everyone's faces one after another. 

"What happen? Did I miss something?" He crossed his arms. "I always get left behind." He reached for one of the sandwiches. It was true. He usually was the last person to know if something happened to anyone of them. He sat on the desk with one leg hanging off the edge, annoyed. 

Nobody was talking. So he turned his attention to Dov. "Dov is it you?" 

Dov frowned. "What? Why do you think it is me?" 

Chris shrugged. "It has to be you. These two look great but you on the other hand look …" He gestured to Andy and Traci then back at looking at Dov. 

"Guilty." Chris finished his sentence. He knew he was right because Dov's face gave him away. He bit off a chunk of his sandwich. 

"Thanks Chris. That was nice." Andy gave Chris a friendly punch on the shoulder. 

"Yeah thanks Chris." Dov said sarcastically. "You figured me out." 

"We're waiting." Traci said as she tapped on her watch. They had less than one hour lunch break after the stakeout. Then they would have to go out patrol. 

"Look it isn't anything serious. It's just something that I need to tell Gail." Dov didn't want to tell them. He didn't need them to know. 

"Alright. Make sure you sort this out." Andy said as she put the last bit of her sandwich into her mouth. 

Dov nodded. Then Traci and Andy left to start their next shift. 

"Come on Chris. You have to help me out." Dov said as soon as they both were out of sight. 

"I'm not taking sides!" Chris stood up. He hated being asked to choose. He loved them both. 

"I'm not asking you to take sides. I'm just asking if you could set us up. Gail wouldn't even look at me. She goes the other way if she sees me going her way. How am I supposed to talk to her then?" 

Chris didn't know if he could help. "I don't know Dov. Why don't you ask Traci or Andy to help? Gail's a woman and they're women. Maybe it would be easier for them to talk to her; you know heart to heart conversation. I don't know." He shook his head. 

"What do you want me to do?" Dov looked desperate, so he gave up. 

"I need to talk to her. If you can get us some alone time, that'd be great. " Dov said. 

"That's it? I think I can do that." Chris said. "What are you going to tell her?" 

Dov sighed. "Something I should have told her sooner."

* * *

Meanwhile at the morgue 

"I hope it is not too late for lunch?" Gail appeared at the door with an apologetic smile. She had texted Holly on the way back to the station. She even said no to free lunch. Andy had offered to buy them lunch but she would rather have last night dinner's leftover for lunch with Holly than fresh sandwiches and good coffee with her friends and answering tons of questions. 

"Nope. I'm waiting for you and I'm starving." Holly had heated their lunch after she got a text from Gail earlier. She figured she could save some time because Gail probably had to go back out patrol or something. 

"Thanks." Gail walked inside and took her usual seat on the sofa. Holly handed Gail her lunchbox. 

"Is it just me or this chicken breast look more delicious than it was last night?" Gail glanced at Holly then looked at her lunchbox. She was hungry no doubt about it but looking at it made her even more hungry. 

"No. It's not just you. I feel the same way. Actually the mere sight of delicious food stimulates the appetite. A study shows that the amount of the neurosecretory protein hormone ghrelin in the blood increases as a result of visual stimulation through images of food. As a main regulator, ghrelin controls both eating behaviour and the physical processes involved in food metabolism." Holly explained while digging through her lunch. 

"In addition to that, environmental factors also have a specific influence on food consumption. Also external stimuli like smell or the sight of food influence our feelings of hunger and our resulting eating behaviour." She added. 

"So in simple words, what you're trying to say is….." 

"Delicious food makes us hungry." Holly finished Gail's sentence and smiled when she looked up to see Gail smirked. 

"Got it!" Gail snapped her fingers. "Everybody knows that delicious food makes you hungry." Gail said, chewing on her chicken breast. "But I bet most people don't know about the neuro thingy you just explain." She added. 

"Yeah and now it is proven by a scientific research." Holly went back to her lunch. 

"Righttttt." Gail nodded a few times. 

"There's also research on fast food and junk food effects on our eating behaviour." Holly said. 

"Don't go there. I'm not leaving my junk food and cheese puffs." Gail made a serious face. 

Holly laughed. "Nothing comes between Gail and her cheese puffs." 

"That's good to know. Thank you Doctor Stewart." Gail couldn't contain her smile at the nerd moment she just had with Holly. She loved every minute of it. She figured it was something she had to get use to as she would be hanging around Holly more from now on. That she would hear Holly telling her all the science facts on just about any subject that came up during their conversation. 

Holly tilted her head and took a bite on her chicken breast. "You're welcome." 

"Maybe I can use that info as my trivia question. We play trivia sometimes and Dov always win." The thought of Dov made her winced. She cleared her throat. Holly noticed the sudden change but didn't ask. 

"Dov has been trying to talk to me." Gail said all of the sudden. The other reason she didn't take Andy's lunch offer was to avoid Dov. 

Holly pushed her glasses up her nose and frowned at Gail. "Why?" 

Gail didn't immediately answer her but continued eating her lunch. 

"It was him?" Holly guessed. She remembered their conversation last night about her friend in the division. It had to be him. That was why it affected Gail so much. If it came from someone she barely knew or someone she didn't see in regular basis it wasn't a big deal but he was part of her circle of friends. They hung out at work. 

Gail nodded. She didn't know if she should listen to him or even gave him a chance to explain whatever he wanted to explain. There was no explanation for it. 

"Are you going to talk to him?" Holly asked, knowing from the look on Gail's face, Gail hadn't decided yet. 

Gail shrugged and then shook her head. "I don't know. Do you think I should?" She respected Holly. She was always looked so calm and collected. Unlike Gail, she was more matured and good at this kind of thing. 

Holly gave it a thought. She wanted Gail to be happy at work, doing what she loved. If she was in Gail's shoes, she would be offended too. 

"It's not okay what he said to you but I think you should give him a chance to explain. If you think you can't accept his explanation after that then it is okay but you will have to do some minor adjustment. How will your relationship with him be at work or if you want to have a relationship with him outside of work." 

"What if he wants to apologize?" Holly asked after a while. She thought that was what Dov had been trying to tell Gail. 

Gail shrugged. She didn't know. "You've been busy." Gail said changing the subject. She looked at the pile of files on Holly's desk. 

Holly nodded. She took that as a cue for her to drop the subject. "Yeah some of the tests need to be done before the end of the day. I need to hand in the report tomorrow morning." 

"We better eat this fast or else you would have to stay pretty late just to finish those." Gail gestured to the files on the tables. "Definitely." 

Gail glanced at her watch. She needed to go. Holly had finished her lunch too. 

"Never mind. Leave it there. I'll clean it up." Holly said when she saw Gail was done. 

"Thanks. See you later." Gail said as she stood up and winked.

* * *

"Where's Chris?" Gail asked as soon as she got into her squad car and saw Dov. Chris was supposed to go out patrol with her, not Dov. 

"Don't get mad at Chris. I asked him to do this." He started the car to start their shift. He didn't waste any more time. 

"Gail. I've been trying to talk to you for days now. Right now you have no choice. You need to listen." 

"I'm listening." Gail spoke, softly. 

"No you have to listen even if you don't want to. This is not easy for me you know." Dov wasn't listening. 

"Dov." 

"I don't care. We work together Gail." 

"Dov! I'm listening!" Gail raised her voice a notch. 

"What?" He frowned at Gail. 

"I said I'm listening." Gail said. "I'm stuck here in the car. It's not like I have a choice." 

"You are?" Dov was surprised. "Oh okay. So here goes." He let out a heavy breath. 

"I want to apologize for saying all those things about you. I know I was wrong. I was getting worked up about this probation thing. I knew you were a good cop and sometimes I get a little bit competitive but it was all because I thought you were my competitor. You are still my competitor but I guess I like it better if it is a healthy competition. You know what I mean?" He glanced at Gail then back at the road. 

Gail was quiet. It was exactly as Holly had predicted. Dov wanted to apologize. Holly's advice filled her mind. She didn't want to avoid Dov every time she saw him. It was tiring and exhausting. Her line of work was stressful enough for her to have to deal with this issue. 

"Do you think I could be here if I were just sitting on my ass?" Gail asked. There wasn't a hint of anger in her voice. 

"I work hard to be here. Just like everybody else, just like you Dov. Just because my last name is Peck doesn't mean I get things easy. It means much more difficult. More pressure to be as good as people expected me to be. No screw up." Gail said as she stared blankly to the road. 

Dov nodded but didn't interrupt. "My mother is the superintendent, my father is a lieutenant, my brother is a detective and my Godfather is the Chief of Police. Do you think it is easy to follow in their footsteps? I get no help or whatsoever just a piece of advice like 'Be a good cop' or 'Make us proud' or 'don't screw up'." Gail sighed. 

Dov had no idea what Gail had to put up with. "I'm so sorry Gail. I didn't know. If I did I wouldn't have said those things to you." Dov felt guilty. On the surface, he thought Gail had things easy. 

"Yeah well. You were a good cop too Dov." Gail turned to look at Dov and smiled. "But I don't need your sympathy. I just need your respect." 

"You have my respect Gail, nothing less than that." Dov said. "I know we started on the wrong foot but I really hope we can be friends." He was hopeful but he wouldn't blame Gail if she didn't forgive him. 

Gail shrugged. The thought of Holly crossed her mind. She smiled. "If you want my forgiveness, you have it and yes I think we can try to be friends." She needed to thank Holly. 

"Thank you. I really appreciate that." Dov grinned and looked at Gail who wasn't as bad as he thought she was. 

"Gail? I have a question." Dov said, relief that bad blood between them had been sorted out. 

"Where have you been between the day we had a fight and right after we finished our stakeout? Because you seem like a totally different person. You're being unusually nice." 

"What is that supposed to mean?" Gail frowned. He just apologized for God's sake. 

Dov let out a nervous small laugh. "Don't get me wrong Gail. To be honest, you don't make a good first impression. You don't look friendly. People called you the Ice Queen of 15 Division, do you know that?" Dov looked at Gail not sure if he just screwed up his five minutes friendship she just struck up with Gail with that statement. 

Gail chuckled. "I'm flattered." 

"So where have you been? It must be someone special. Is it the one you went out to dinner with?" Dov asked again when he was certain Gail didn't take offence. 

"Oh my God. Does everybody know? Who told you? Why would I bother asking? It has to be those two!" Gail shook her head. Couldn't they just keep a secret for a while? 

"Yup they told me and Chris about it. We were wondering, that's all. Now we know there is a special person in Gail Peck's life." 

"Just shut up Dov." Gail groaned. "We're still in the phase getting to know each other alright? Yes I hope we will be more than friends, happy now?" She was somehow regret having forgiven Dov so soon. 

"Not quite. We still haven't figured out who this person is." Dov tried to fish some more information. 

Gail sighed. "I won't tell you guys who it is. You will be pestering her all day!" When Dov started talking, he really talked. 

Dov laughed. "So now we know a little bit about this mysterious person, huh? Good job Dov! Do we know her?" He got a smacked on the shoulder from Gail. 

"Hey what was that for?" He glanced at Gail and smirked. 

"Don't you go telling them about her!" Gail warned him. He let out a chuckled but promised to keep his mouth shut. But looking at his devilish grin Gail wouldn't bet on it.

The rest of the her shift with Dov went pretty well.

* * *

"Hey Gail!" Gail spun around to find her brother chasing after her. 

"Steve?" she said with raised eyebrows. 

"It's so hard to find you these days and you didn't pick up your phone." Steve complained as soon as he got closer. 

"I'm busy with work?" Gail crossed her arms. Her brother should know better. 

Steve sighed. "Yeah probably. Hey listen. Are you busy tonight?" 

"Why?" 

"Mom told me to come home for dinner tonight. Dana and I just broke up. I need back up." Steve looked like he almost said please. "She will ask about her, I know for sure." 

"Please." He begged. "I want to avoid all the talk. You know how mom is. At least if you were there, you could take some of the heat." He smiled. 

"Now why would I want to do that? Take some of the heat from you? Then she nags at me for not having a boyfriend? Oh my god, she probably will set me up with another dude." Gail said with horror on her face. Her mother set her up with a guy after Weston but that didn't go pretty well. So her mother decided to give her a break but her Gail-need-some-break days would be over if her mother knew Steve was single again and her daughter was not dating anyone. Gail would be her mother's sad sappy project. 

"Oh come on Gail. Okay here's a deal. If you help me tonight, I promise I will do the same for you when you need back up." He offered, really wanting for Gail to agree. 

Gail remembered that she hadn't had a plan with Holly tonight. Besides Holly looked like she would be stuck at work pretty late with all the files and paperwork she saw at her desk during lunch. She might need Steve's support later in regards to her relationship with Holly. 

"So?" He waited. 

"Okay deal!" They shook hand. 

"I'm sorry for interrupting." Traci looked at Gail then to Steve. She nodded. "Detective Barber wants to see your report on the stakeout on his desk no later than today. I suggest you better do it now or he would send me again to remind you." Traci was holding a file and she noticed Gail was looking at it. "And I just finished my report." She raised the file in her hand. 

"That fast?" Gail took the file from Traci's hand. 

"Steve, this is my friend Traci Nash. Traci, this is my brother Detective Steve Peck." Gail opened the file and read it while introducing Traci with her brother. She didn't think she had introduced any of her friends to Steve yet. 

"You can call me Steve. I'm in Guns and Gangs unit." Steve introduced himself. "I remember you from the welcome party at the bar." Steve said extended his hand for a shake. "You can call me Traci." Traci nodded and shook his hand. 

"I have to go." Steve said as to excuse himself. He gave Traci a tight-lip smile and a nod. 

"Gail! Don't be late!" He shouted while walking down the hall. 

"Don't be late for what?" Traci asked curious. 

Gail looked up from the report in her hand and made a face. "To be his back up at Peck's family dinner tonight." 

Traci didn't know what that meant but wished Gail good luck anyway and excused herself to hand in her report to Detective Barber. 

Gail took out her phone from her pocket and saw she had two missed calls from Steve and one unread text message from Holly. She opened Holly's text message. It was two hours ago. 

_Lunchbox: I was thinking we could hang out tonight but I have tons of work._

_It's okay. We have plenty of time for that. I have a dinner date with my family._ Gail replied. 

She got a text a minute later. 

_Lunchbox: Okay :)_

_And thanks for your advice._ Gail replied. 

_Lunchbox: You're welcome_

She shoved her phone back into her pocket and went to her desk to write her report. Then she had to get ready for her family dinner. 


	9. Chapter 9

Thank you for reading. Enjoy :) 

Disclaimer: I love Gail Peck and Holly Stewart. I do not own Rookie Blue or any of its amazing characters. 

Chapter 9 

"You look lovely." Steve commented on her sister's appearance as soon as she stood next to him in the living room. 

"Thanks. I've spent almost forever to do my hair and make-up. So I was expecting that kind of compliment." Gail bowed a little. "Did they invite anybody tonight?" Their parents sometimes invited some of their friends to come over dinner. "I hope they didn't." 

"I don't know but probably. They invited me." 

"Steve, last time I checked your last name was Peck. You're the son of the Pecks. You don't need invitation to come for dinner!" Gail snarled at him. 

"I thought this was a formal dinner or I wouldn't dress up like this to have dinner in my own house." He gestured to what he was wearing, three-piece suit, and his usual clothes for work. "And you are wearing a dress." He gestured at Gail. He was told to dress presentable for the dinner, so he told Gail to wear something nice. 

"So? Your point is…?" Gail said as she walked to the dinner table. "I do wear dresses sometimes. If you had been paying attention, you'd know. Hello, how long have you been my brother?" Gail frowned. 

"Yeah you do wear dresses sometimes Gail but only to dinners, weddings and other formal social functions. When you have to! Admit it!" Steve followed her, not wanting to let this go. Nobody was in the kitchen but food was already on the table. 

"Wow. They must have invited people to come over. Look at all these foods!" Steve said. He reached for a bottle of wine on the table. His eyebrow rose when he saw the date on the bottle. "This is expensive. Maybe mom invited one of your blind dates!" He laughed. 

"You are so not funny!" Gail punched his shoulder. "You better hope not. Deal or no deal, I'd leave!" Gail threatened him. 

"Gail, don't do this." He was worried when he saw Gail turned. "Okay you win!" 

Gail turned back and smiled. "That's more like it." 

"Steve, can we get drunk tonight?" Gail crossed her arms. 

Steve turned to look at her. "Yeah of course. There is plenty of booze tonight. If we can't get it here, I'll take you somewhere else. It's on me." Steve said as their parents took their seat. 

"Of course it's on you. You begged me to be here. So you have to pay for it." She whispered as she took her seat next to Steve. 

Their father cleared his throat. "It's good to see both of you here. Your mom and I have invited a few people over to join us tonight." He said as he looked at his two precious. 

"Who?" Steve asked for both of them. 

"Gail's Godfather and one of your mother's old friends and his son but the Chief just called to cancel." 

At hearing the mention of the son, Gail mood turned sour. _Oh God, why would I agree to do this again?_ Gail thought but she kept a straight face. 

The doorbell rang. "That must be our guests." Their father went to greet the guests. Gail glanced at her mother. _Opportunist_, Gail thought. Her mother must have set this up at the last minute. 

She heard her father chatted with an unfamiliar voice as they approached the table. Her mother stood up. "Richard! It's been a while." Her mother hugged the old guy Gail supposed was her old friend her father had mentioned. 

"Elaine, it's so good to see you too after all these years." The old guy said when they parted. "Bill." He said when he shook her father's hand. He turned to a young guy next to him. "I'm guessing you know who this is?" He said as he smiled and patted the young guy's shoulder. 

Her parents exchanged look. "Is it Russell?" Her mother had a good memory. Richard laughed. "You still have a good memory Elaine." The young guy offered his hand. 

"It's good to see you madam." The young guy said as he shook her mother's hand. 

Gail and Steve were standing there waiting for their turn. "The last time we saw you, you were still a teenager." Her mother was delighted. "Look at you now so handsome and all grown up." Her father added. 

Russell gave them a tight-lip smile. 

"Sir I'm Steve." Steve introduced himself to Richard. They shook hands. "Steve." Richard glanced at the Pecks. "I heard you're in the police force." Steve nodded. "Yes, sir. I'm a detective in Guns and Gangs Unit at 15 Division." Steve said, proud. 

"That's good for you. Your parents must be proud." Richard brought his attention to Gail. "This must be the Princess of the Pecks family." Richard extended his hand to Gail. "Sir, I'm Gail." Gail shook his hand, firm. He smiled at that. 

"Just call me Richard. Are you in the police force too?" He asked still held Gail's hand. Gail nodded. "I'm still a rookie. I just graduated from the academy a few months ago." 

"I'm sure you will do well, Gail." He let go of the handshake. "Steve, Gail this is my son Russell." Russell shook hands with Steve and then turned at Gail. "Hey I'm Russell." Gail smiled and shook his hand. "I'm Gail." 

Her mother clapped her hands once and gestured everyone to sit down. "That's enough with the formality. Now Richard, tell me where have you been hiding?" Her mother asked. "You just kind of disappeared after you retired." 

"I'm not in hiding Elaine. As you know I retired early because of my back problem. I did a couple of different jobs but they didn't suit me well. So with my little knowledge about security, I decided to open my own security firm." Richard said as he took a glass of wine from Elaine. 

"That's great. How is the firm now?" Her father chipped in. 

"The firm is doing great. We just opened our third branch in Vancouver. I was hoping Russell would take over one day but he's not interested." He looked at his son. 

"Oh why not?" Her mother asked. 

"I'm in law school. I'm studying to be a lawyer." Russell said as he glanced at his father who looked proud. 

Steve was relief because there was no way his mother would ask about Dana tonight but he felt pity for Gail. He glanced at his sister and shook his head a little. She didn't look thrilled. Steve felt a kick to his leg. He looked at Gail and saw her smirk.

"What about you? The last time I heard you were a lieutenant and now you're a superintendent! I'm impressed but was I surprised? No. If someone could climb up that ladder, it's you." Richard said as my mother looked a little flattered with his compliment. 

"Oh Richard. I worked hard for this job but I was lucky Bill had supported me all the way." Her mother glanced at her father. 

The conversation throughout the dinner was all about their old days as they took a trip down memory lane. Richard turned out to be her mother's partner before he retired. Gail was getting bored and had stopped paying attention and just concentrated on food at the table. She was wondering why Steve was invited to come in the first place and why she wasn't invited in the first place. It didn't make any sense. It wasn't until midnight when Richard excused himself. 

"Oh look at the time. I'm afraid we have to leave." He glanced at his watch. 

"Stop by sometimes Richard." Richard nodded. "I will." He looked at the siblings. "Steve, Gail it's good to see both of you." They shook hands. 

Her parents walked them to the door. 

"Did mom put you up to this?" Gail asked as soon as they were alone. 

"I swear to God Gail I had nothing to do with this. I didn't even know we had guests. You've got to believe me." He arched his eyebrows when he saw Russell was coming their way. 

"He's coming this way." Steve murmured as a warning to Gail. 

Gail turned. "Hey guys. It's nice meeting you Gail." Gail smiled. "Oh your mother gave me your number. I hope you don't mind." 

_Yes, I do mind_. "No I don't mind. It's a shame you have to leave." She said as she sipped on her wine. 

"I hope we can meet again." Russell said as he waved goodbye. They both waved. 

"Mom must have liked him so much. She never gave your number to any of your dates before." Steve said as they watched Russell until he was out of sight. "She shouldn't have done that." He shook his head. 

_Yeah, she shouldn't have done that._ Gail drank up her wine. Setting her up with dates was one thing but giving out her number was another thing. 

"Why did you give him my number?" Gail asked as soon as she saw her mother. Her father had gone outside to walk them to their car. 

Her mother was cleaning up the table. "I like him. He's studying to become a lawyer although I'd be happier if he followed in his father's footsteps. He looks like a decent and well-mannered young man." 

That wasn't an answer Gail was expecting. "Shouldn't you ask me first before you give him my number?" 

Her mother went around the table to hug her. "I'm sorry Gail. I thought you wouldn't mind. He said he wanted to be your friends. That's all." She let her go and went back to clean the table. Gail looked dejected. 

Steve stood there watching their conversation. He felt guilty. If he knew this would happen, he wouldn't have asked Gail to be here. Her mother looked pleased when he told her Gail was coming. 

"Hey." He said to Gail when their mother went to the kitchen. "Let's go get drunk." He dragged Gail out of the house before their mother came back.

* * *

"You come here often?" Gail asked as soon as they stepped inside the bar. She never came here before. 

"No but my friends are regulars. They told me about this bar. They've been bugging me to come here. I don't know what is so special about this bar though. It looks okay but nothing special." Steve looked around the bar and gestured at the empty table near the corner. He waved for the waitress. 

"Can I get you anything?" The waitress, Jessica as Gail read on the name tag pinned on her uniform came to take their order. 

"Two beers please." Steve said. "Anything else?" Gail made a face. She was full. She might have gained five pounds just for what she ate tonight. She just wanted to have a drink. 

"That's all." The waitress nodded and left. 

It wasn't crowded but there were only a few empty tables left. The music was playing slow dance. The waitress came back with their beers. 

"Steve, what's going to happen to us?" 

"What do you mean?" Steve asked, not really sure where this conversation headed. 

Gail was playing with the beer. "You and I. We don't really have a strong long lasting relationship. We always screw up. We tend to self-sabotage our relationship. I'm starting to think it's a Peck thing." 

Steve chuckled. "No sister. I don't agree. Yes I don't really have past relationships that long lasting like you said but it's just relationships. Sometimes it works sometimes it doesn't. It's as simple as that Gail." 

"Take Dana for example. How long did you two lasts?" Gail asked. She didn't really like her. Dana chewed her food loudly and it annoyed Gail to no end. 

"We didn't last long but it's no big deal. We are two different people. She goes one way while I go the other way." Steve gestured with his hands showing two different paths. 

"And you only realised that now?" Gail laughed. 

Steve shrugged. He didn't really think about it to be honest. They were happy together at first but the feelings were just not the same anymore. He wasn't thinking further about his relationship with Dana. He thought maybe she wasn't the one. 

"We don't fit together, Gail. Maybe she's not the one. What about you?" Steve asked. "You don't have strong long lasting relationships too. When was the last time you hooked up with a guy?" 

Gail drank up her beer. "With a guy? A few years ago if you don't count all the blind dates." It was a few years ago when she was dumped by that jerk. She hadn't had a relationship since then. Just a few blind dates her mother had set her up. She wondered where she could place her and Holly's relationship. _Maybe somewhere in between friendship and relationship_, she thought. 

"Are you seeing someone?" Steve asked when he saw Gail was staring blankly at her beer. 

Gail nodded. "Maybe." Gail waved and gestured for the waitress to bring them another bottles. 

Steve raised his eyebrows. "This is good news. At least one of us is not single. Care to share?" Steve tried to get more information. 

"What do you want to know?" 

Steve grinned. "What about a name?" 

"Not telling." Gail said, grinned. Steve groaned. "Okay. What can you tell?" 

"Smart and weird." Gail smiled as she described Holly. If she was drunk, she probably said so much more. Two words were not enough to describe how she felt about Holly. 

"That's an interesting combination. Can we meet?" Steve nodded at the waitress when she put the bottles on their table and left to attend other customers. 

"Not yet. It's too soon." Gail shook her head. She liked Holly but there was a feeling that she couldn't quite explain. She had told Holly she wanted to take things slow and she was lucky Holly wasn't the pushy type. She gulped down her second beer. 

"Okay. I'll find out soon enough." It wasn't too hard to find out. They worked at the same division. This person either someone she met at work or was one of her friends. Considering Gail wasn't a friendly type, Steve pretty much certain it was someone from work. 

"Don't you go snooping around Steve." warned Gail. Her brother wasn't like that but she had to warn just in case. Steve waived at the waitress to bring them another bottles. 

Steve grinned. "The way you've been staring at the bottle and the way you just warned me, I think this is pretty serious. Although I think you don't really know or maybe not too sure how to proceed, I have confidence that I'll be hearing about him soon. Just take it easy. If he's the one, he's not going anywhere but if I may warn you, if he's the one and you're taking a long time to decide someone else might come along. So act fast." He laughed, must be the alcohol doing because Gail didn't think it was funny. 

_He? You'd be surprised_, Gail thought. "Thank you, Doctor Steve for your kind advice. I'll keep that in mind for future reference." 

"I'm just saying, Gail. Sometimes it's not worth it to wait that long. Trust your feelings." He drank up his beers and waved at the waitress again. 

"Don't get too drunk Steve. You're driving me home tonight." She drank up her own beers. She lost count on how many she had had tonight but looking at the empty bottles on the table, she pretty sure she had a lot. 

"Don't worry I won't but we haven't had a drink like this for ages. Remember when I sneaked you in to the bar when you were fifteen? You said you wanted to know how it felt to be an adult in a bar! I had hell from mom and dad when they found out." 

Gail laughed. She remembered that time they were scolded and she was grounded for a week. Her brother took all the blame even though it was Gail who insisted on Steve to sneak her in. "Yeah how could I forget? Luckily it wasn't put into record." 

"Yeah lucky for you. I was an adult, you were a minor." Steve waved for the waitress again. The bar was getting crowded with people coming in but not many people leaving. "It's getting crowded." Gail looked around the bar. No empty seats and it were getting noisy. "Should we leave?" 

"No. Let's stay here for a bit longer." 

"I'm sorry for taking too long. It's getting crowded and we kind of short of staffs tonight. One called in sick." Jessica, the waitress explained. She smiled at Gail when she saw Gail was staring at her. 

"It's okay, as long as we have our beers." Steve raised his bottles to the waitress. She nodded and left when someone called her name. 

"Here." Steve raised his bottle up. "Come on Gail. Cheers!" He urged Gail. Gail raised her bottle. "Cheers!" They gulped down the beers and then laughed. 

They spent a few hours there until Steve remembered he had to work in the morning. "Gail, come on. We have to go. I have to work in the morning." 

"Well, I don't. You go home." Gail said as she waved for the waitress again. Steve took her hand down. "You had enough for tonight Gail." 

The waitress came to their table with more bottles. "I'm sorry, no more. We're leaving." Steve said as he helped Gail to get up. 

"I can walk by myself." Gail said as she stood up. They were leaving when they heard the waitress called. "Hey!" Jessica, the waitress called for Gail. She turned around and the waitress put a piece of paper in Gail's hand. 

"Call me if you like." She winked and then left. Steve laughed. 

"No wonder she's been ignoring my signals. She had someone else in her eyes. She just hit on you!" Steve patted Gail's shoulder. "Good going sister! Are you going to call her?" Steve asked as he dragged the drunken Gail out of the bar. 

Gail looked at the paper in her hand. "No." Jessica was pretty but she only saw Holly in her head. She tossed the paper to the floor on her way out.

* * *

Holly was woken up by the sound of her ringing phone screaming to be picked up. _It wasn't this loud during the day_, she thought. She turned on the lamp on her bedside table and glanced at the clock. "3 a.m? Who is calling me at this hour?" Holly said as she positioned herself against the headboard and reached for her glasses on the bedside table. She had thought maybe it was a call from work. She took the phone and looked at the name appeared on the screen. She was immediately alert when she saw it was Gail. 

"Gail?" Holly asked. She didn't hear an answer so she waited. "Gail, are you there?" Holly asked again, this time with a little urgency in her voice. Why would Gail be calling her at three in the morning? 

"Hey Lunchbox." Gail chirpy voice came on the line. "What's up?" 

_What's up?_ She took a minute to compose her thoughts. She heard Gail was laughing and giggling about something. She couldn't quite hear what Gail was mumbling about. 

"Gail, are you okay?" Holly asked, concerned. 

"Holly, what are you doing?" Gail asked, ignoring Holly. 

Holly glanced at the clock again. "It's three in the morning Gail. I was asleep." 

"Oh I'm so sorry to wake you up. I didn't know you were asleep." Gail apologized but didn't really sound like she meant it. She laughed. 

Holly frowned. The last she heard from Gail was yesterday when she text her. She had family dinner. 

"You had dinner last night." Holly hoped the dinner went well but Gail sounded like she was drunk. Something had happened. 

"Gail, are you drunk dial me?" Holly chuckled. That was a surprised. 

"No. I mean yes I'm calling you but I'm not drunk. You said I can call you if I want to." Gail defended herself. "I just wanted to hear your sweet sweet voice tonight." 

"Yes I did say that but you sound like you're drunk." Holly smiled at that honest confession. 

"No you're wrong." Gail giggled. "I had a little drinking but I'm not drunk." 

Holly thought about it. "Gail, can you give me a shout out? Say 'Yee-haw!'" 

Holly heard Gail shouted 'Yee-haw' as loud as she could. She shook her head because she was certain that Gail was drunk. She was hoping that Gail didn't wake up everyone in the house. 

"Oops maybe that was too loud." Holly couldn't see but she was sure Gail wasn't trying so hard to stay quiet. 

"Where are you?" Holly asked. "Do you need me to come pick you up?" 

"I'm here." Gail said. "No thank you for offering but I'm already home." 

"Who drove you back home?" Holly asked. 

"It was Steve." Gail answered. 

"Who is Steve?" Holly asked again. 

"He is my brother. Oh yes. I haven't told you about him right?" Gail laughed. "I will introduce you to him one day or maybe tomorrow? He wanted to meet you. Oh I may have mentioned you to him though. I can't really remember." 

"Where is Steve now?" Holly asked. 

"I have no idea. He drove me home and make sure I was in bed and left. He probably in his room I guess. Where would he be right? I don't think he would drive home at this hour. He used to live here but he moved out like a few months ago. I went to his apartment a few times and God it was squeaky clean. You could literally see your reflection on the floor tile." 

Gail was mumbling and Holly couldn't help herself smiling. "It was probably his girlfriend's doing. He told me once that she was so neat but too bad they broke up. That's why he wanted me to be his back up tonight. He was afraid that my mother would pest him about it but he made a deal with me so I said yes. He doesn't look so sad about the break up so I don't know if he is sad. I think my mother didn't like her." 

"What kind of deal?" Holly asked, curious. 

"He promised to be my back up when I need him. My mother didn't like my last boyfriend but seriously why wouldn't my parents like you? You're awesome and amazing! My mother will like you, Holly. I liked you from the first day we met." Holly was smiling at that, glad that Gail had drunk-dialled her. 

"Are you worried about that?" Holly had to ask. Gail wanted them to go slow and this could be the reason. 

"Of course I'm worried! Just last night she invited this guy to dinner. My parents invited his father so she thought why not bring his son too. Oh hear this. She gave him my number because she likes him so much and he told her he wanted to be my friend. Can you believe that? Exchanging phone numbers. What are we in high school?" Gail snorted. 

Holly didn't know what to say to that. "I'm glad that both of you are okay although I do think that someone else should drive you both home." Holly said. 

"He isn't as drunk as me." Gail said. Holly thought that was beside the point but didn't argue. 

"So you admit that you're drunk?" Holly smiled. She was glad nothing happened on their way home. It was careless of them to drive while intoxicated. They were police officers. 

"Yes." She stopped. "No I mean you literally made me say that." Gail said, clearly not thinking straight. 

"How did I do that?" Holly asked again, amused. She had never seen a drunken Gail. 

"Well you ask so many questions so I have to answer them honestly." Gail said honestly. 

"How was dinner?" Holly was hoping the dinner wasn't so bad that the siblings had to get drunk after that. 

"It went well. My parents and her friend mostly talked about old stuff and things that we know was for our own good. She has been saying all this stuff my whole life." She cleared her throat. "Steve suggested that we get some booze in our system. He's paying so there is no reason for me to say no. Maybe he is sad about the break up or maybe he was feeling guilty." 

Holly stayed on the line listening to Gail's story about everything that crossed her mind at that time. She hummed to whatever Gail was saying to make sure Gail knew she was still there. 

"So this is all Steve's fault if you ask me." Gail giggled. "So tell me about your day." Gail said as she finished telling her tell tales to Holly. 

Holly scratched her forehead. Her day hadn't exactly started yet. "Well yesterday was a little hectic. There were a lot of things to process but I managed to finish them all up before midnight." Her eyes darted to the clock. She had to be at work in 4 hours. Gail probably had a night shift or she wouldn't have drunk. 

"That is expected from you Doctor Stewart." Gail said. "I want to hear your voice. Tell me more." Gail's voice sounded so soft and distant. Holly thought Gail was sleepy but refused to sleep. 

"There wasn't anything interesting happened yesterday but I guess.." Holly stopped when she didn't hear anything from Gail. 

"Gail?" Holly said but she was sure Gail had fallen asleep. She smiled. 

"Good night Love. Sweet dreams." She listened to the phone but didn't hear anything except for a soft breath she was sure was Gail's. Holly put the phone in her ears for a while and then ended the call. She lie back on her bed and closed her eyes, smiling and wishing that Gail would come in her dreams. 


	10. Chapter 10

Thank you for reading. Enjoy :) 

Disclaimer: I love Gail Peck and Holly Stewart. I do not own Rookie Blue or any of its amazing characters. 

Chapter 10: 

"Good morning Lunchbox!" Gail tired voice filled the room. 

Holly looked up to see Gail yawning at the door with two coffees in her hands. She leaned back on her chair and tilted her head. It had been almost a month since Gail first brought her coffee. It had been a routine for Gail since then to bring her coffee in the morning and she would be the one taking care of their lunch, if they had time to have lunch together. It was like an unspoken rule that she would fix them lunch if she had time. She figured Gail liked her cooking even though Gail had never said it out loud. 

"Good morning Gail." Holly glanced at her watch. "You're a bit early today." Holly said as she watched Gail took her usual seat on her sofa. It had been a usual sight too. Gail wasn't supposed to be there in the morning. "I thought your shift was supposed to start in a few hours." She got up to take the coffee from Gail. 

"I didn't want to get up so early today but I did." Gail groaned, head thrown back and her arms rest on the sofa. She would come here whenever she had time. Her friends had noticed her absence especially during lunch break. "There's a new case. A kid was missing last night. They need every officer on the street so my shift has been brought forward. Some of us are already gone. I can't stay here long because I have a briefing in twenty minutes." 

"You look terrible." Holly couldn't help but felt pity for Gail. She looked like hell. "It will be a very long shift for you." 

Gail laughed but regretted it. She held her head. "Yeah tell me about it. I feel like I'm experiencing one of the worst hangovers I've ever had. I didn't think I drank too much last night but I didn't remember anything. I do remember about the bar though, just a little bit." Gail closed her eyes, wishing she was still in bed. She hoped she wouldn't throw up in front of her colleagues. That would be embarrassing. 

Holly looked closely at Gail. She put her hand over Gail's forehead. "So you really don't remember anything last night after the bar?" Not feeling any sign of fever she took her hand back. 

Gail sighed. "No not really. We didn't see each other after work yesterday right? It's funny because I thought I talked to you but maybe it was just my imagination or my memory just messed up." Holly thought she wouldn't mention it since Gail had no recollection of it. 

"You shouldn't drink just coffee. Stay here. I'll be right back." Holly said as she went out. Gail just nodded. She wasn't planning to go anywhere, not even out on the street. She could sleep in the sofa, even on the floor. 

"Here." Gail opened her eyes and saw Holly was holding a cup, a water bottle and crackers. "It's for your hangover. I hope it will make you feel better." Gail took the cup closer to her nose and sniffed. 

"What is this? Where did you get this?" Gail asked. She didn't wait for Holly to answer. If it came from Holly it should be good. She drank it up. 

"It's a sport drink. Electrolyte solutions are good for replacing the salt and potassium you lose from drinking last night. The morgue is not a scary place. We pretty much have everything here and if you're going out there, I want you to have a clear head. The lasting effects of alcohol reduce your ability to perform at your best." 

"Oh please avoid taking any medications for your hangover that contain acetaminophen such as Tylenol because it may cause liver damage when combined with alcohol but if you insist on taking it please do so with caution and aspirin can irritate your stomach." Holly advised. "And that's a fruit juice." Holly gestured at the bottle on the table. "Drink a lot of water or fruit juice. It should help to prevent dehydration. If you had any stomach pain, bland foods like crackers may boost your blood sugar and settle your stomach." 

"Dehydration?" Gail asked while trying very hard to process all the information she just heard. Was it her or the alcohol made her think that Holly was sexier in her eyes? Her eyes darted from Holly's eyes down to her nose then finally to her lips. Gail swallowed hard. 

"Alcohol causes our body to produce more urine. In turn, urinating more than usual can lead to dehydration often characterized by thirst, dizziness and lightheadedness." Holly patiently explained to Gail. She looked concern. 

Gail chuckled. _So this is what having a doctor at your side feels like. You don't need to worry and you get medical advice for free_. "Thanks I'll keep that in mind." Gail stood up. "I probably won't have time for lunch today but I'll come by after work?" She was hoping to see Holly after her shift ended. She yawned again. 

Holly nodded. "Yeah sure. I'll keep your lunch just in case you're still hungry. Gail? Be careful out there." She sipped her coffee. 

"Okay. Thanks for this." Gail raised the bottle and the crackers in her hands as she walked out. She still needed to change into her uniform. 

Holly looked on. "I knew she wouldn't remember." She shook her head as she went back to her desk to continue her work.

* * *

"Hangover? It sucks huh?" Andy said when she saw Gail walked into the locker room. "With that look on your face, you shouldn't be walking around Gail." Andy laughed and took off her shirt and getting her uniform on. 

"I feel like a zombie but I'll be fine. I have this." Gail raised her bottle of fruit juice and crackers to Andy and walked to her locker. She put them and her coffee on the bench and dug into her pocket for her keys. The clinging sound of the keys felt loud in her head, she unlocked it. 

"What's that?" Andy gestured with her head. Gail took her shirt off and put on her uniform. 

"Those are a bottle of fruit juice and crackers. The fruit juice will help to prevent dehydration and the crackers will help boost my blood sugar. I had electrolyte solutions earlier and that was to replace the salt and potassium I lost by drinking last night." Gail replied without thinking. "And I shouldn't get acetaminophen too because it may damage my liver." Getting drunk was easy but shaking off hangover was a hard work. _Why didn't I just call in sick?_

_Electrolyte solutions?_ Andy frowned. Gail had been using sciency words lately. "You had time to see a doctor?" She sat down to put on her working boots while Gail button up her uniform. 

Gail snorted. "If I had time to see a doctor, I'd rather use that time to sleep Andy. I only stopped by to get coffee." She didn't have time to see a doctor but she did have time to see one specific doctor. She closed her locker a little bit too hard and she cringed at the loud sound. 

"Then what about the electrolyte solutions?" Andy asked not following Gail. 

"What about it? You're not coming?" Gail asked when she saw Andy still sitting on the bench. "You're going to be late." 

"You go first. I'm waiting for Traci." Andy shook her head when Gail yawned on her way out.

* * *

"Hey Gail. Wow. What happened to you?" Chris said as soon as he saw Gail. "You look like hell. Are you sober?" 

"Good morning to you too and thank you for your concern. I really appreciate it. I'm sober as I can be." 

"So is everything sorted out between you and Dov?" He didn't see Gail after shift yesterday and Dov didn't mention it so he forgot to ask him. 

Gail put the bottle she was holding on the desk and took her seat. "Yes everything sorted out in which you played a little part in it." Gail said as she looked at Chris. 

Chris smiled nervously. "Well yeah. Dov was like a little at lost, you know. It wasn't like he had a choice. He said you had been avoiding him like a plague." He hoped Gail didn't mind. 

"Which he deserved it." Gail quickly said. If she was being honest, she glad they had settled it. "He was an ass." 

Chris nodded. He knew a little bit about the issue. "Yeah. I thought he was harsh too. He totally deserved it." 

"Who totally deserve what?" Dov asked as he came to his desk to put his car keys into the top drawer. Gail and Chris both turned to him. By the way they stopped talking and looking at him like that, he knew they had been talking about him. 

"Uh you totally deserve it." Chris said as he looked at smiling Gail who had no intention to provide a cover up. "I told Gail that I gave you the other empty room in my apartment." _Yeah, that would do_. 

"Oh yeah. I'd been looking for a new apartment for a while. The one that I had was totally stinks. Besides your apartment is not that far away from the station." Dov said. "Thanks Chris for letting me moved in with you. I really appreciate it." 

Chris gestured with his hands. "It's not a problem. As long as you agree to pay half the rent, I'd say it's a good deal. It saves me some money." He reminded Dov. The rent was expensive and he barely had enough money to spend. 

"Yeah of course and also I'll pay half the utilities. I can cook too or we can alternate." Dov said. "Ah don't worry about cleanliness. Even though I'm a guy, I really like to keep things clean." 

Chris shrugged. "It doesn't really matter to me. You take care of your stuff, I'll take care of mine. Just don't touch my things." 

"Okay lovebirds. Congratulations. Now I know that Dov has moved in to your apartment Chris, can I go now? You guys can tell me about your love story and chores arrangement later. Briefing is in five minutes." Gail said as she stood up slowly. Her head was spinning. 

Dov and Chris looked at each other. "Uh Gail? It's not like that. It's not what you think." Chris said as he watched Gail walked to the briefing room. 

"I'm sure it's not like that right?" Dov joked as he looked at baffled Chris. "Dov!" Chris called for Dov as he followed them to the briefing room.

* * *

"You look great today Peck. You had a good time?" Detective Swarek joked as he waited for other officers to settle in their seats. 

Gail smiled. "Yes Sir I had a good time." She didn't remember what happened for the rest of the night until the phone call she received from the station this morning. How she could hear the ringing was beyond her. 

The room was slowly filled and buzzing sounds as they chatted with each other in low voice. Staff Sergeant Best walked into the room and the room was quickly in silent. 

"Good morning. I won't waste any more time. As you all know there is a kid missing last night. All of you here will be replacing the night shift to search the street, to keep your eyes open for anything that seems odd. We will do everything we can to find the boy. Go talk to the people on the neighbourhoods to see if anybody saw something. The case will be handled by Detective Swarek and Detective Barber. I'll let them explain further." 

Detective Barber nodded to Staff Sergeant Best and pointed to the white board behind him. "The boy is Adam Johnson, eight years old. His father informed the police that the boy went out to the store a few blocks away from their house at around 7 pm. So he called 911 at around 11 pm when Adam didn't come home and he couldn't find him. According to the store assistant, she saw a suspicious guy in a parked car outside the store last night. She believed she saw the guy talked to Adam. She was distracted by the phone call so by the time she looked again, they were gone. The only thing that left was Adam's bike. The picture of the boy is on the hand-outs. I want some of you to patrol on the surrounding area and the others just go to the street and ask around. If you have any new information please alerts me or Detective Swarek immediately." He looked at everyone in the room. "Any questions?" 

"What kind of car is it?" Traci asked. 

"It's a blue SUV. That's all we've got." Detective Swarek raised a paper in his hand. "The suspicious guy is now our suspect. His sketch is on the hand-outs." They all read the information on the paper. "This case has been all over the news. Some of you will stay to handle phone calls and tips and some of you will go out on the street. Hopefully we will get something." 

"Alright. Please be careful out there." Staff Sergeant Best took over. "Let's find the boy." They all nodded and went to carry their orders. 

"Gail?" Gail was just out the door when Steve called for her. "What are you doing here?" He was surprised to see Gail. She wasn't supposed to be here. 

"I'm surprised too. I should be home asleep. Thanks to you." Gail started walking. 

"Are you blaming me? How am I supposed to know they would be calling you this morning?" Steve was being defensive. "I thought you had late shift." 

Gail knew it wasn't Steve's fault but it was good to have someone to blame especially your older brother. "You should have stopped me." 

Steve chuckled. Gail was a mess last night. She looked like she needed it so he didn't stop her. He was surprised Gail could wake up this early. "Oh hey. Did you call her?" Steve asked as he walked away. 

Gail made a face. She had no idea what Steve was talking about.

* * *

"Dov, can you do me a favour?" Gail said as she looked at the people walking on the street. 

"What?" Dov glanced at her. 

"Please stop talking. You're too loud and you're like a talking puppet that keeps on talking even when people have stopped listening like five seconds after you open your mouth." Gail rolled her eyes. 

"I'm just saying Gail. Chris has been complaining about my video games collections in the living room. I don't have time to arrange all of them in my room. I just moved in two days ago." Dov complained about Chris complaining. _Then who is going to listen to me complains about Dov complaining about Chris complaining about him?_ Gail didn't pay any attention to any of it until she heard the word video games that made her head turn. "He knows how busy we are especially with this missing kid's case." 

"Wait what? You play video games?" Gail asked looking at Dov. He didn't look like someone who liked video games but if you looked at him twice, he did look like it. 

Dov turned and nodded. "Yeah. I have a full collection of games. You just name it; Call of Duty, Grand Theft Auto, Battlefield 3. Just to name a few." 

"I play video games too and pretty good at it. No I take that back. Actually I'm very good at it." Gail grinned. Dov laughed. "No no Gail. You may be good at it but you can't possibly be better than me." 

"Is that a challenge?" Gail turned sideways. She couldn't let anyone underestimated her skills in video games. 

"Well it is! If I win, you do whatever I say for a week, Peck!" Dov was confident he could beat Gail. 

"If you lose, you'll bring me coffee every morning and do my paperwork for two weeks." Gail laughed. "You're going to regret this Dov Epstein." 

"Okay! Let's do this this weekend. I'm going to rip that smirk off of your face." Dov glanced at Gail. He always won. Gail shrugged. She was sure she could beat Dov. 

"1505. We got a 911 call at 564 Lincoln Street on a possible kidnapping." 

They both looked at each other. "We're responding." Dov answered. 

"Could it be the same one responsible for last night's kidnapping?" Gail asked as they were speeding to the location. "Two kids in two days. Whoever it is got some balls." 

Dov glanced at Gail. She could be right. If they didn't get this guy soon more people would be his victims.

* * *

"Madam, did you call 911?" Dov asked the panic woman as soon as they got out of the car. 

"Yes. I did. He took her! He took her!" She was frantic and Dov took out his notebook and looked at Gail. She had looked around but didn't see anything odd. 

"Can you tell me exactly what happen? What exactly did you see?" Dov asked as Gail came next to him. 

"I was walking down the street over there." She pointed across the street. Dov nodded. "I didn't pay any attention as I was running late to work but I was shocked when I heard a scream. So I turned to look where the scream came from. Then I saw a guy shoved that poor little girl into his van." She put her hands together. 

"That's good. What else did you see or hear?" Dov encouraged the woman to remember every detail that might be crucial to finding this girl. 

The woman was hesitated. "The girl was screaming so I figured she was being kidnapped. I heard she cried 'help' a few times before she was pushed into the van. I was scared and I didn't know what to do. That's why I called you." She stopped. "I think I heard the guy said something like 'shut up bitch'. I think he said that to someone else in the van." 

"There was someone else with the girl?" Gail asked. The woman shook her head. "I don't know. Maybe." 

"It's okay. Can you describe the guy?" Gail took turn to ask. 

"Um he is a big muscular guy. He has short dark hair. He wears a white shirt and blue jeans." 

"Did you notice if he had anything that stands out like a tattoo or something?" 

"I'm sorry I don't know. I wasn't that close to see." 

"What about the van?" Dov asked. 

"It was a black van but I didn't see the plate number." She looked apologetic. 

Gail took out the sketching of the suspect. "Does this guy look familiar to you?" 

She nodded. "Yes yes I think that's the one I saw." It wasn't what they wanted to hear. 

"Gail, we need to bring her down to the station." Dov put his notebook back into his pocket. 

"Wait! Are you saying this guy is the same guy who took that little boy on this morning's news?" The woman asked, horrified. 

"We can't comment on ongoing investigation, madam. We need you to come down to the station with us. We need to take your statement." The woman nodded and followed them to the car. 

Dov opened the car door for the woman as Gail slide into the driver's seat. They didn't realise they were being watched.

* * *

"Madam, I'm Officer Diaz and I'm going to take your statement. Please come with me." Chris directed the woman to sit and get comfortable. The woman followed Chris. 

"Peck! Epstein!" Dov and Gail both turned when they were called. Staff Sergeant Best gestured for them into a corner, away from the woman. 

"Can she identify the kidnapper?" Staff Sergeant Best crossed his arms and glanced over to the woman. He made sure he lowered his voice. 

"I showed her the sketch of the suspect and she confirmed it was him. She also told us that she has never seen the girl before. So we still don't know who the girl is." Gail told him what the woman told them in the car on their way back to the station. 

"Well maybe she will remember something else when she calms down a bit but she did mention about someone else being in the van. It could be a double kidnapping." Dov speculated. "It could be the girl's mother or a sister." 

"Sir, do we have any new leads on the missing boy?" Gail asked. 

"Nothing so far. I want you two back on the street. Diaz will take the woman's statement and do the rest." 

"Yes Sir." They both followed their order.

* * *

They both were quiet. They had two kids missing, no leads and a panic witness. The kidnappings were all over the news. It would make things more difficult for them as the kidnapper would be more cautious.

"It's almost twenty four hours since the boy was reported missing." Dov said as he pulled over. There was a suspicious car stopped on the road side. "Let's see what the problem is." They walked slowly to the car but their hands were quickly on their gun by the waist when they saw the broken window. Nobody was in the car. Gail bent over to look at the back seat as Dov checked on the front seat. 

"Dov." Gail glanced at Dov and stood up straight. "We got a shirt with blood stain on it and I'm pretty sure it was the same shirt Adam was wearing when he went missing." She remembered the details of what Adam wore when he was last seen. 

"Gail, this is a blue SUV." Dov said as he peeked inside the car. "I'm going to call for back up." 

It didn't take long for the other officers to arrive together with the forensics team. 

"What you got?" Detective Swarek asked as soon as he came closer. 

"A blue SUV with a shirt with blood stains on it." Gail informed. Detective Swarek took a look inside the car and stepped aside when a crime scene techs asked to be given a little space to work. 

"This SUV could be our suspect's car from the first missing case." He glanced over at both of the rookies. "If it is indeed his car why would he left it here for us to find? And the shirt with blood on it?" He rubbed his chin. 

"We have some hair on the driver's seat. We need to take this car down to the station so we could process it." The crime scene guy said as he put the hairs and the bloody shirt into the evidence bags. Detective Swarek took it from him after he had sealed it. 

"I'll take this." He said when the crime scene guy frowned at him. 

"Peck, take this to the lab. Find out if it matches the boy's DNA. Keep me posted." Detective Swarek gave the order. "Epstein, you stay here. I'm going back to the station to run the plate number and see if we can find out who the owner is." Dov nodded and the crime scene guy resumed his work. 

Gail took the evidence bags and went to her car.

* * *

"Hey thanks so much for doing this." Gail hastily walked in with a coffee in her hand. She had been here for almost two hours. She had to do something while Holly was doing her magic. 

Holly looked up from her computer. "Kid goes missing it's pretty much at the top of the pile." She eyed the coffee Gail put on her desk. "Thanks." She needed that. 

"So did you get the result? Did it match? Is it the boy?" Gail asked impatiently. When Holly didn't answer she asked again. "You can't rush it? You can't make it move faster?" 

Holly leaned back on her chair. "Sure. I can just brush the polymerase chain reaction. It's not like it's important. Maybe you could chip in. How would you identify the short tandem repeats?" Holly asked as she got up to get her coffee. 

"You could've just said no." Gail rolled her eyes. She didn't mean to push but there were two missing kids out there and they didn't have any leads. If it was indeed the boy's blood in the car, they could hope the kidnapper would leave traces. "I'm sorry. I know you must have gotten this a lot from us." Gail meant police officers doing exactly what she just did. 

Holly nodded confirming her thoughts. "This process usually takes a few hours or more depending on the quality of the DNA samples. I have to do this right and very carefully. We can't make the process any faster than it is now." She crossed her arms. This happened a lot and every time she had to explain. "How is the case going?" 

"A girl was kidnapped this morning. There is a witness but she hasn't been much help. The girl was probably with her mother or sister and we believe he took her too. The boy has been missing almost twenty four hours. We are trying to figure out if these two cases are connected because right now we have nothing." 

"That's terrible. I really hope you guys catch whoever is responsible." Holly kept looking at her computer screen. There wasn't much she could do. Gail's phone rang. 

"Not yet. Doctor Stewart is monitoring the process as we speak. She says it will take a few hours or more before we get the result." Holly watched as Gail explained to most likely the Detective assigned for the case. "Yes Sir. I'll inform you as soon as I get the result." 

Gail came behind Holly who was checking something on her computer. "Do you see this?" Holly pointed to her computer screen when she realised Gail was standing behind her. 

"Uh huh. It's the same as the one you have on your desk over there." Gail pointed to the double helix model on Holly's desk. She had no idea what that was but she was ready to hear the doctor's explanation she knew was coming. 

"You noticed." Holly said, surprised. 

"I've been down here more than once Holly. I could come down here with my eyes close. So yeah I noticed." Gail smirked. Considering her frequent visits, people would have thought she was one of nerds if she wasn't wearing her uniform. 

Holly explained the whole process to Gail. Gail was shaking her head by the time the doctor finished. 

"Holly, I'm amazed but seriously, if you were my science teacher back in high school I'd probably did great on my science exam. Probably spark my interest in science too because these entire interesting and yet complicated stuff sound easy when you explain them." Gail looked at Holly, wide eyes. Being a police officer she had to have knowledge in science too but not as complicated as this one. 

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to go all crazy nerdy doctor on you." Holly wasn't sure if Gail just mocked her. She just wanted Gail to see all the process that needed to be done and that if she could make the process any faster she would have done that. "How's your head? Are you feeling better?" Holly asked wanting to change the subject. 

"Yeah. I think I'm feeling better. I just need a few hours sleep which I will get in a few hours when the next shift takes over." Gail smiled. She didn't mind all the science talk she had with Holly but hearing all at once seemed too much for her. 

"So you're saying the PCR and the STR analysis are used to analyse the reference sample? After the DNA profile is created it will be compared against another sample to determine whether there is a genetic match?" Gail thought since she was here and Holly was willing to teach it didn't hurt if she learnt a little about what Holly job was. She seemed to want Gail to know. It would be good for her police career too. She was still a rookie and there were a lot for her to learn. Her mother would be proud. 

"And this whole process is called DNA Profiling?" Gail said, wanting to know whether she understood. Holly nodded and couldn't help smiling. She knew Gail was listening despite the expression she wore on her face the entire lecture. They heard a beep sound and both turned to the computer. 

"It's done. It's printing the result." Holly said as she went to the printer. Her expression said it all when she looked up from the print out. "The DNA from the blood sample you brought in matches the DNA from the missing boy's father." She handed the paper to Gail. 

Gail swore. "I have to inform the detective. Should I be relief to know that it is his blood knowing it also means that the boy is hurt?" Holly touched her arm. "Anyway I have to go." 

"I'll start processing the hair you found on the driver's seat." Holly said. Gail nodded. "Okay. Let me know if you find anything." 

"Holly? Do you still have my lunch?" Gail asked as she walked to the door. Holly nodded. 

"Great. I'll see you after my shift." Gail didn't wait for Holly's answer. She knew the doctor would wait for her. "Oh one more thing." Gail said at the door. "You are so irresistible when you're in your nerd mode." Gail winked and left. It wasn't the alcohol. She heard Holly laughed.

* * *

Holly's phone rang. She got up to pick it up on the desk. "Hey Jasmine." She said to the phone as she sat back at her seat on the sofa. She glanced at Gail. "What? No of course I remember." She nodded. "Yes I'll come but I don't think Lisa and Rachel will be going. They told me last week they both had a meeting they couldn't postpone." She listened to the phone. "Yeah alright. I'll see you there." She hung up. 

"Whatever it is, you totally forgot about it." Gail said as soon as the call ended. "I can tell." 

Holly took off her glasses and put it on the table. "Yeah. I hope she didn't notice." She went to her desk and opened the top drawer and there was a card in her hand. "Do you have plans this weekend?" 

Gail shrugged. She had agreed with Dov to play video games but it was just Dov. "It depends." She looked up from the magazine she just picked up. Holly had her science journal and magazines on the table. Gail had been perusing all the magazines hoping to find any more articles Holly had written. She would read it even though it made zero sense to her. 

"Gail, would you like to be my plus one?" Holly asked while reading the card again. She looked at Gail, hopeful. 

_Yes I would love to be your plus one Holly_. "My answer depends on what occasion we are talking about?" 

"I hope you don't have plans on Sunday because we're going to a wedding." Holly said as she folded the wedding invitation. 

"Wait a minute. A wedding?" Gail asked. "I don't like weddings especially big weddings. It's supposed to be a celebration of love between two people but really everyone is so concern about what they're wearing or who they're going with. I think it's a fake single world." 

"Wow you really don't like weddings. So I take that as a no." Holly shrugged. It looked like she had to go alone. 

"I never said that. It's just what I think about wedding in general." Gail smiled. "I usually dodge this stuff but if you want me to be your plus one I'm not going to say no." 

Holly was relief. "Thanks. My friends can't go so I really don't want to go alone." 

"Are you two close?" Gail asked, wanting to know a little bit about Holly's friends. 

"You mean Jasmine and I?" Gail nodded. 

"We were classmates back in college but I wouldn't say we were close." Holly looked at far distant. "I've only seen her a few times after college." Gail was wondering how Holly was like back in college with all the books and being a nerd like she was. 

"What are you smiling about?" Holly asked when she saw Gail was preoccupied. 

Gail cleared her throat. "I wasn't smiling." Holly smirked. She knew Gail had something on her mind. 

"Anyway, here's your dinner." Holly handed Gail her heated dinner. 

"God I'm starving!" Gail closed her eyes in bliss as the smell of her dinner filled the room. She had skipped her lunch. 

"So did you guys find anything yet?" Holly asked as they enjoyed their dinner. She hadn't heard from Gail after she left the lab. 

Gail chewed her food slowly. "It's ongoing investigation." Holly rolled her eyes. 

"Who am I going to tell?" Holly insisted. She knew Gail couldn't tell her but she wanted to know. 

Gail sighed. "We found out the SUV belongs to a guy who has quite a criminal charges against him and together with the DNA result of the hair we found in the car we now have a name and a face. We're lucky he is in the system. Unfortunately he has been missing since five years ago. Nobody knows where he is now but I'm sure if he is back in town somebody knows where he is." 

Holly nodded and thought that was as much information she could get from Gail. They ate their dinner and talked about other stuff and the wedding. They didn't take too long to finish their dinner as both were hungry. Holly had forgotten to take her lunch. 

"You need a ride?" Holly asked as she switched off the light. Gail didn't drive to work today so she nodded. 

Gail opened her eyes when she felt the car had stopped. She turned to Holly but didn't say anything. Holly smiled. "You're welcome." 

Holly waited but Gail didn't move. Before she could ask, Gail reached for her hand. "Thank you." Gail didn't know what the thank you was for. It wasn't for the car ride. She just wanted to say it. She leaned in to give Holly a kiss. The kiss was soft and gentle but slowly turned passionate the longer their lips touched. Gail's hand was on Holly's shoulder and it had been wanting to touch some place else. She had been fighting the urge to kiss Holly in her lab all day today especially when Holly was talking her science. _Was it the alcohol?_

"Gail? Can we talk?" Holly said after their lips parted. She knew she agreed for things to go slow but she waited long enough. They should at least talk about this. She needed to know how exactly Gail felt and if they were going somewhere. They were seeing and flirting with each other almost every day and Holly knew she wanted more than just that. 

"Right now?" Gail shook her head. "I'm tired. We both are tired. Can we talk later?" Gail knew exactly what Holly wanted to discuss. She knew Holly knew she was avoiding. "I have an early shift tomorrow." 

"Yeah sure." Holly nodded and smiled. _Maybe she's not ready?_ Holly thought. "Good night Gail." She watched as Gail got out of the car. 

"Good night Holly." Gail waved and waited until the car was out of her sight. 

"It wasn't the alcohol. Your feeling for her is getting stronger Gail. Stop being afraid." She sighed. 


	11. Chapter 11

Thank you for reading. I agree with you Luck :)

Disclaimer: I love Gail Peck and Holly Stewart. I do not own Rookie Blue or any of its amazing characters.

Chapter 11:

Holly would take whatever Gail could offer. Gail was different than any woman she had been with before. Sometimes she just couldn't figure her out. It intrigued her. That was one of the many things she loved about Gail. She was unpredictable but despite her snarky remarks and cold character she had sensitive side hidden deep inside her. She was lucky to be the one that had the chance to see it. _It's all in your hands Gail. Please don't push me away_.

"Doctor Stewart? The police have been trying to reach you." One of her assistants appeared at the door brought her back to reality. She sat up straight.

"Why didn't they call me on my phone?" She took her glasses off. It would be quicker to reach her if they had called her on her phone like they usually did.

"They did but they said you didn't pick up. That's why they called the morgue." Her assistant waited.

"Really? I didn't get the call. Where's my phone?" Holly looked around for her cell phone and the phone in her office was out of service and needed to be replaced.

"Um I don't know." He answered hesitantly.

"Oh I wasn't asking you. Did they say when they will come to replace the phone in my office?" Holly reached for her bag and dug inside it. She checked in the drawer but couldn't find it.

"I have no idea but I can check it for you. We filed the complaint like a week ago. It shouldn't take this long." He looked at his superior. He had never seen Doctor Stewart zoned out at work. She usually so focused in her work.

"Maybe I left my phone at home or in my car. What do they need me for?" She asked, putting her glasses back on.

"They need you to be at a crime scene. Here's the address. A crime scene team has been dispatched earlier." He said as he handed a piece of paper to her. "They said it's about a body dump but didn't elaborate."

"Thank you Rodney. I'm going in a minute." He nodded and left. Holly took off her lab coat, reached for her car key in the drawer and grabbed her forensics' kit on her way out.

* * *

"Hey." Gail said in a surprised tone of voice. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm the forensic pathologist." Holly smiled when she realised she just caught Gail off guard. She pointed to the body in front of them. "You guys called for me. I'm sorry if I startled you." That didn't happen very often.

"Yes of course. We found a body that's why we called you." _What is wrong with you Gail? _"We believe it is the missing boy. No you didn't startle me." She cleared her throat. "I was just thinking about some stuff." _I zoned out_.

Holly looked around to see the crime scene officers had started to take photograph of the surrounding area which had already been secured.

"I'm the responding officer. Detective Barber has been informed and will be here any minute now." Gail explained. "He told us to get you here immediately and for you to wait for him because he will be late." Holly glanced at her watch and got back to watching the body as they waited for the detective. Gail watched as Holly took out the evidence bag and a pair of gloves from her forensics' kit.

"I didn't get coffee today. I was running late." Gail turned around and realised there weren't any police officer close to them, just a couple of forensics' guy which she paid no mind at all. She felt the need to explain.

"That's okay. A colleague bought one for me today." Holly smiled. Just last night Gail gave her a kiss but the thought that Gail might be avoiding her crossed her mind. "It's no big deal. Maybe I should get you coffee for a change."

"I won't be late again. I just wanted you to know that I'm not avoiding you." She didn't want Holly to think she was avoiding her. That was simply not true.

"You read my mind but Gail, it's okay. I appreciate you bring me coffee every morning but it's just a freaking coffee." Holly said as she turned around to look at Gail. _To have the chance to see your face every morning that's what matters_. She wanted to give her a hug but decided against it. They hadn't really showed affection towards each other in public. To think about it, they only hung out after work or Gail would come down to the morgue and she never went looking for Gail at the station. Besides they were working. Gail gave her a tight-lip smile.

"Good morning Doctor. I'm sorry for making you wait for me. I have to drop my kid off at school like I do every morning but Leo had one of his moods today." Detective Barber said as he walked quickly towards them. "He's been acting up since he got up this morning." They both turned to the Detective.

"Good morning Detective. It's not a problem. I just got here. I haven't done anything yet, just checking the visible signs of injury. Now that you're here we can start a preliminary examination." Holly stood up and gestured for one of the crime scene officer to come take photographs of the corpse.

"What do we have here?" Detective Barber said as he looked down at the lifeless body of a young boy. "He looks like the missing boy. What kind of a human being would do something like this to a kid?" The image of his son crossed his mind. "It won't be too hard to identify him right? I hate to break the news to his father."

Holly nodded. "His body is not badly decomposed but I have to do the autopsy, as usual." She squatted and pushed her glasses up. "What is this?" She mumbled as she leaned closer to the body. Detective Barber glanced at Gail behind him and squatted down. Gail came to take a closer look but stayed standing behind them.

"Is it some kind of wounds or injuries?" Detective Barber guessed.

Holly shook her head. "These wounds are neatly incised. They're definitely not lacerations. I have to say I'm impressed at how delicate and clean these cuts are. Whoever did this have skills and know what they're doing. There are a few of these cut marks on the body." The crime scene officer took photographs of the cut marks.

"What does that mean?" Gail asked more to confirm her own theory. She had seen similar images or cuts in one of Holly's magazines she had been reading in her office.

"The position of the cut marks on the body could suggest one thing. You can find similar marks on one's body after surgery to remove organs."

"Are you telling me his organ is missing?" Detective Barber surprised. Gail sighed at Holly's explanation.

"I can't confirm anything until I do an autopsy." Holly refused to jump into conclusion but according to her experiences that type of wounds could only mean to remove organs. "I need to take the body to the morgue for an autopsy as soon as possible." She stood up and gestured for her assistants to collect some samples and arranged for the body to be carried to the morgue.

"What about the second sample in the car?" Detective Barber asked Holly as he jotted down something on his notebook. "Have we gotten the result? yet?"

"The result should be in already. I'll check it out once I get back to my lab and have someone send it over to your office." Detective Barber nodded as Holly walked back to her car.

* * *

_At the morgue_

"Doctor Stewart." Holly looked up when she heard Gail's sweet voice but was disappointed when she saw Detective Barber was with her.

"Detective, Officer Peck, I'm in the middle of doing the autopsy." They both hoped she had found something that could help them break the case.

"What did you find?" Detective Barber stood across from Holly while Gail chose to stand next to Holly.

"Just as I expected, several of his organs are missing. The body cavity had been filled with newspapers." Holly pointed at the newspapers she just pulled out from the body at the end of the table. "This incision on his stomach was to remove the liver and lung." Holly went on to show them the other cut marks on the body.

"This is unbelievable!" He rubbed his chin with his hand. "COD?"

"The cause of death was due to blunt force trauma to the left side of his neck. Unfortunately, I haven't found any physical evidence on him yet. He has been washed and cleaned up pretty good but I'll keep looking." Holly stopped to look at both of them. "He also had some bruises. They're recent. I'd say approximately two to three days old."

"That's consistent with the time he'd been missing. He could be putting up a struggle, giving the kidnapper some hard time. Thanks doctor. Please keep us posted. Peck, let's go." Gail smiled at Holly and went to follow Detective Barber.

* * *

_At the briefing room_

"The report from the forensics confirmed that the hair we found in the car yesterday belongs to one Ross Perrick. He was a MD before he lost his license about four to five years ago. He has no record since the last five years. No parking tickets, no credit card, no nothing." Detective Barber said. "His bank account has been dormant since the last five years so we assume he only use cash, untraceable."

"His last known address is at 26th Street Springmore. McNally and Diaz, I want you to go there and ask if anyone has seen him recently or if anybody know his current whereabouts."

"Why is he in the system?" Gail asked as she read the hand-out in her hand.

"He has a prior records that is why he is in the system. He had an assault charges when he was still practising. He had one attempted rape but wasn't prosecuted because the victim dropped her charges. He is arrogant or he wouldn't leave his car and the boy's shirt for us to find. It'd only make him more thrilled. He escaped once and he thinks he will this time but we're not going to let that happen."

"Were they being kidnapped for the sole purpose of harvesting their organs?" Dov asked.

"We don't know that for sure but at the moment we're not ruling out anything. We're investigating every possible aspects of this kidnappings. All we know this guy could be a middle man. He kidnaps and take their organs. His motive could be money or just for the pleasure of cutting people up. We don't have any clues on whether he's on his own but it's possible that he has an accomplice or maybe he works for an illegal organization. We're not ruling that out either."

"Diaz, Nash. Find if there's any similar missing cases like this one that is still pending."

Officer Cruz appeared at the door. "Sir, we have a tip on the suspicious black van. It was seen at an abandoned building near Springmore this morning."

"That's his old address. Everyone, let's move."

* * *

_In the meantime at an abandoned building_

"You were careless." A guy with a snake tattoo on his forehead spoke.

"What? I don't know what you're talking about. I did as you told me to do." Perrick laughed. He looked around anxiously.

"Did you? You left your bloody prints all over the woman's body. So other people have to cover it up for you. You see? When I tell you to do your job I expect you to do your job. I was told you were good at this." He laughed. "And you have guts to play cat and mouse chase with the police."

"What do you mean?" Perrick retreated.

"How did you get that scar? You couldn't help yourself to touch that woman, could you? Old habits die hard." He pointed to the scars Perrick had on his neck and arms. He looked at him, disgusted. "How you do your job is none of my business as long as it's done but if it jeopardise my operation it becomes my business. Are you being funny or just plain stupid?"

Perrick swallowed hard. It just happened. When he grabbed the girl he didn't realise her mother was there. Two bodies were better than one so he took her with him. He was sloppy. The woman was his type, a blonde so he couldn't help himself but he made sure after he got what he wanted their bodies would never been found.

"So you do know what I mean." He said as he saw perrick was quiet. He laughed. "I don't know how Victor can praise you so highly. You're not as good as he says you are." He stepped forward. "I can't afford the police to figure it out and connects you to us." He lighted his cigarette. "Soldier boy here said that there is a witness who can identify you."

"But I gave you two bodies at the price of one and there's no way I can be connected to you." Perrick, for once feared for his life. This man in front of him wasn't kidding to end him. "Not even with the boy's body."

"You are in the system. They just need to work a little bit harder to connect the dot. I can't let you live."

"No they can't. I've been practically a ghost since the last five years. I didn't go back to my old place and nobody knew where I was. I don't even have a bank account. I live on cash. Trust me. They can't trace me back to you."

"Well that makes things easier." The guy laughed. "If we kill you now, the police won't have any more leads."

Perrick turned around and tried to run but was stopped short when someone punched him on the face. He lost his balance and fell down on the floor. "Look. I'm sorry. It's just one mistake. I've been doing a good job for you. I never failed to get you those kids." Perrick tried to bargain for his life. He looked at the guy called soldier boy in front of him. He had a weapon drawn and pointed at him.

The guy shook his head. "No. One mistake is a mistake. You're no good to me alive. Kill him." Perrick shouted but one shot right between his eyes killed him instantly.

"We have to lay low for a while." The guy said to his right hand man. "Make sure nothing can ties him to us." He said as he left the building.

* * *

"Gail?" Holly said when she saw Gail slumped onto the sofa. She just came back from the lab.

"I came but you weren't here so I let myself in." Holly went to sit next to Gail. She placed her hand on Gail's knee.

"Perrick was our only lead. There is no indication about his past that could tell us about his connection with anyone except that he was capable of doing something like this. He had no friends and no immediate family and now he's dead. It just so unfair." Holly just listened to what Gail wanted to say. She needed to get it out her chest.

"They suspect this case is bigger and involves some major illegal organization so the case has been handed over to organize crime unit for further investigation. I hope they find and bring whoever responsible down. We haven't found the girl and the woman yet." Gail sighed and close her eyes. "We won't stop looking." The probability to find them alive was slim but they could only hope.

"Organ harvesting and trafficking is driven by greedy middle men and desperate wealthy recipients. People will do whatever it takes to save their loved ones, even if it's against the law. No questions asked. There's an enormous demand for organs, and whenever there's gap between supply and demand, desperate buyers and desperate sellers will dictate a black market." Gail nooded, agreed with what Holly just said. She knew that but innocent people were killed in the process.

"Are we still going to the wedding?" Holly asked after they had been quiet for some time. She wanted to make sure Gail didn't change her mind.

"Of course we're going. Why wouldn't we? I've already picked up a dress. You better not cancel!" Gail shot Holly a look. She just bought a new dress especially for the wedding. She wanted to look good.

"I'm going if you're going. I'm just making sure you still want to go. How are you feeling now?" Holly asked concerned. Gail looked exhausted.

"I'm fine but I think I'm going straight home." She saw Holly nodded.

"You need a ride?" Holly offered.

Gail shook her head. "Thanks but no."

* * *

_Later that night, at Holly Stewart's Apartment_

Holly's phone rang. She saw the caller's name on the screen. She let it rang until the ringing stopped. She put her phone back on the couch and closed her eyes. She smiled when those memories crossed her mind. Things were great in the beginning for them but somehow she felt that something was missing. What was it? Was it her or was it Gail? She knew they had something special, a connection and that was why she dared to let her hopes up. She knew Gail felt the same way. When she tried to talk with Gail about it she seemed to avoid it. She knew Gail was afraid to move forward. She could say she understood. It was a new territory for Gail. If only Gail would talk to her. She just hoped Gail wouldn't freak out because she didn't think she pressured Gail that much. Her phone rang the second time. She picked it up on the third ring.

"Hey Holly!" A cheery voice came on the line. She knew that voice very well.

"Hey back. You sound too happy. Did you catch bad guys today?" Holly knew this was going to be a long conversation. When this woman started to talk it was hard for her to find a stop button.

She heard her friend laughed. "It has nothing to do with catching bad guys although I am happy if that happens but I'm always this happy! Don't tell me you just noticed? And you enjoy listening to me talking. Admit it!"

"I've noticed that on the first day. You couldn't just stop talking. I was about to text Lisa and Rachel to help me planned an escape route to get away from you." Holly laughed. "But thank God for that hot and spicy food you ate. I always wondered why you ordered that food when you couldn't stand it."

"You are so mean! It was too spicy I almost fainted! I told you I wanted to try something new. I didn't know it was spicy but whatever. So what are you doing?"

"Nothing really. Just chilling, enjoying Friday night." Holly said.

"Do you want to go out? Drink some beer, go dancing and rock on. If you're too lazy to drive, I can pick you up." Her friend was a dancing queen. She was certain they wouldn't get home until the crack of dawn. Although she hadn't had a plan for tomorrow, she just not up for beer and dancing tonight.

"Um maybe next time? It was a long day. I just want to curl up in my bed and have a good night sleep." Holly didn't have the mood. She turned on the television and pressed the tv remote to find a good show worth watching. Her finger stopped pressing when she saw on her tv screen what looked like a clip for the next episode of Rookie Blue. She winced when the female police officer was shot in the neck_._ _Looks like a good cop show. I hope she survives_, she said. She changed the channel again and when she couldn't find any, she turned it off and headed to the kitchen to get a drink.

"Holly, are you listening to me?" Her friend must have noticed her silence.

"What?" Holly asked. She wouldn't stop talking even when people had stopped listening. "I am listening."

"Okay, next time but it is Friday night Holly. It's not like you have anything to do tomorrow."

_No but I have a wedding date on Sunday_. "Just the usual, morning run and I have a few books I want to read."

* * *

_In the meantime, The Pecks Residence_

Gail just had a shower. It was a long and also an awkward day. Holly didn't say anything about the talk. What would she tell Holly? That she was scared? Was she ready to take a next step and take this relationship to a whole new level? These questions never crossed her mind in the beginning. It wasn't like she wasn't serious at first but it just never occurred to her that she would be this scared. Now that they had been seeing each other for months she couldn't avoid or run from this if Holly brought it up.

She lied on her bed and stared at the ceiling. The first moment they met when she stepped into her room until yesterday event played in her mind. It was never occurred to her that she would be interested in girls, let alone falling in love with one. She didn't really know how to handle that. She knew sooner or later Holly would want more but she stuck like a cat on a tree where she had nowhere to go.

"Come on Gail. Don't be a chicken. You want this." She took her phone on the table and took a deep breath. She stared at her phone in her hand. She had Holly's number on a speed dial. After like forever staring at her phone, she pressed the call button. She heard the busy tone in her ears. She tried again and again. She gave up after the third time.

"You should've told her when you had a chance at the morgue. Who is she talking to at this hour anyway?" Gail mumbled as she glanced at the wall clock. It was almost midnight.

She picked up her phone and started to text. It wasn't a long text but it was what she wanted to tell Holly. She re-read the text again and pressed send. She put her phone down and went back staring at the ceiling. She hoped everything would go well. It didn't take long for her to doze off. She didn't see a message on her phone that said her battery was about to die.

* * *

"I'm yawning." Holly yawned as her head touched the pillow. She glanced at the alarm clock on her bedside table. "It's almost midnight. Can we continue this conversation later?" She said as if her friend didn't notice.

"Okay okay. I'll stop. I'll call you some other time okay? We should meet up. It's been a while since the last time I saw you. Maybe we can ask Lisa and Rache too. I haven't seen them since our last girl's night out! When was that? A few months ago right? And you are hard to reach these days! I have a thing tomorrow. What about this Sunday?"

She did it again. "Yeah sure. I'll call you but not this Sunday. I'm not free."

"Okay just call me whenever. Good night."

"Good night." She was sleepy. She was about to put her phone down when she noticed she had a text coming in. It was from Gail.

_The Girl in the Closet: Hey Lunchbox. I called you but I couldn't get through. You're right. We should talk. I suggest we go somewhere else after the wedding and have that talk. If that's okay with you. See you on Sunday. *kisses*_

She missed the calls. If only she had cut the conversation short. "Damn." Holly cursed as she read the text again. She called but was reverted to a voice mail instead. "Double damn." She thumped her phone on her bedside table.

**P/S: My Story is not beta read. If you notice any inconsistent details with the previous chapters, do let me know. Thank you. :)**


	12. Chapter 12

I hope this chapter is satisfactory :) 

Disclaimer: I love Gail Peck and Holly Stewart. I do not own Rookie Blue or any of its amazing characters. 

Chapter 12 

"Hey." Gail said as soon as she got into the car but she stopped when she had her eyes on the driver. "You look gorgeous." She stared at Holly. She had never seen Holly in a dress. "You should consider wearing dresses more often Holly. My eyes would appreciate it." _Especially at work so I can go down there and have an eye treatment_. _Watching the other uniforms all day long is boring_. 

"Thanks but not so bad yourself." Holly smiled as she looked at Gail. "You look stunning in that dress as always. Too bad I can't say the same thing to you because I love your uniform. So I'm not complaining." She winked. 

Gail blushed. "I bought this dress especially for the wedding and I'm wearing it for you. I'm glad you like it." Holly never said anything about her uniform. Now she had another reason to love her uniform other than just being a proud police officer. 

"Did you get my text message?" Gail asked as she buckled up. She woke up this morning with anticipation of what was going to happen after the wedding. She was nervous and excited all the same. Everything was going to be okay. That was what she had been telling herself. 

"Yeah I did. I called but your phone was switched off. Forgot to charge your phone?" Holly asked because she knew Gail wouldn't turn her phone off just in case the station needed to reach her. Holly on the other hand had a habit to switch her phone off whenever she charged her phone. Then she forgot to turn it back on again. It annoyed Gail and she made sure Holly knew it. 

"People do forget to charge their phone sometimes and I'm no different." She glanced at Holly and refrained herself from asking who Holly was talking to on the phone that night. "You always forget to turn your phone on after charging. Now you complain?" 

Holly rolled her eyes and Gail saw that. "Don't roll your eyes on me." 

"So you have any ideas where to go after the wedding?" Holly asked. She was glad that Gail reached out for her and extremely happy Gail wanted to talk. 

Gail shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know. Where do you suggest?" 

Holly thought about it for a moment. "If we're going to talk, I'd prefer some place quiet and private where we won't be disturbed." 

"You mean like your apartment?" Gail turned to look at Holly. She didn't know why that crossed her mind when Holly said private and quiet. It couldn't be her house because her parents just got home when she left and Steve might come over. Public places wouldn't be private. 

"Well not necessarily my apartment. Hell I don't even care if we had to sit in your closet again as long as we have the talk." She meant what she said. She really didn't care. She turned the key to start the ignition. "It doesn't matter and if you want to come over to my apartment then let's do that. We can do it over food. I have leftover pasta and chicken breast from yesterday." 

"Oh what's the occasion?" Gail asked. 

"Nothing special. I just felt like eating but I ordered too much." 

"Well eat as much as you like because you don't have to worry about your weight gain." Gail grinned as she looked at the woman next to her. She was physically fit. Thanks to her exercise routines. "You always look great." 

"There's around 225 to 270 calories in pasta although the amount differs on which type of pasta you consume but that's the average. The one I had yesterday probably had around 242 calories in it." Gail looked at Holly who was doing the math in her head. Typical Holly. 

"Tell me what do you think about movies? What's your favourite?" Gail asked stopping Holly before she went into more details. They needed to spend more time together and she thought going out for a movie or rented a movie to watch at Holly's apartment was a good start even though Holly hadn't invited her to come over to her apartment yet. She might as well invite herself over. 

"I love all kinds of movies especially science fiction but I haven't really watched movies these days. Too many things to do with too little time to spare." 

"Let me guess. Star Wars?" It wasn't that hard to guess what kind of science fiction movies her nerd loved. 

"Yep I have full collections of the entire episodes!" Holly said excitedly. Her eyes never left the road. It was a few of her favourite things other than her book collections. 

"Good for you." Gail raised her eyebrows. She wasn't into that kind of movies. _Going for romantic comedy movies is the best bet_. Gail could think of a few movies she loved and Holly might enjoy. "We're not going to watch Star Wars or whatever Star just to be clear." 

"Sure anything but horror movies. I get nightmares." Holly remembered the last time she watched a horror movie. It started when she was young. It took her a while to be able to sleep alone again. 

"Then celebrating Halloween must be fun for you! A haunted house?" Gail grinned. The only reason people went to a haunted house was either to get scared or to get hugged. In her case, it would be the latter if she went with Holly. 

"Believe me it wasn't a nice experience if I must say. I felt sorry for the guy." Holly chuckled when she remembered the last time she went to a haunted house. 

"What happened?" Gail intrigued. 

Holly sighed. "Well I went to a haunted house a couple of years ago with some friends. I didn't want to but everybody got a ticket. I didn't want to wait for them outside so I thought it wouldn't be so bad. It was okay the first few minutes but then he came out of nowhere. I was surprised so I punched him in the face. He fell down on the floor. It was dark but I could still see his face. From the look of it he was pissed off." 

Gail laughed so hard. Holly rolled her eyes. "Well it wasn't funny at that time and still not funny now. Will you please stop laughing?" 

"It's a little bit funny." Gail was still laughing when Holly pulled into a parking lot. "I feel sorry for the guy. What did her ever do to you Holly?" Her side hurt from laughing too hard. That was a good laugh. 

"He was guilty of jumping at me, trying to scare me. So that's what he got!" Holly turned off the ignition and turned at Gail who tried to keep a straight face now that Holly was staring at her. "I didn't mean to. I was surprised. Plus he dressed up as a clown. It's spooky!" 

"Well he was just doing his job. Poor soul. We're definitely going to a haunted house this Halloween." Gail unbuckled her seat belt and followed Holly's eyes to the big house. "Your friend's rich." 

"Uh huh. Let's go." 

_Time flies when you're having fun_. _Can't we just skip the wedding and go straight to your apartment Holly?_ Gail sighed. The longer she waited the more agitated she became.

* * *

"May I take your coat?" The coat girl said when she saw them walked through the door. They handed her their coats. The girl went to hang them at the back and returned with a tag numbers. 

"In the jar please." The coat girl gestured at the jar on the table. They put two dollars each in the jar and took the tag from her. They were about to turn and leave when they were stopped. 

"What about my tip?" She smiled. Holly took a few dollars from her wallet while Gail didn't have smaller notes in her wallet. 

She glanced at the coat girl and said, "I only have a five." Gail frowned when the coat girl extended her hand in front of her. 

"Wow." Gail shook her head as she put the money in the girl's hand. Gail rolled her eyes. Holly pulled Gail out of the room before Gail could think of any polite remark to the girl but not before Gail gave her one last look. 

"Forget the coat girl and your five dollars tip. It's a wedding! Let's have some fun." Holly muttered 'Macarena' as she danced a little. 

Gail rolled her eyes. "Yeah let's get this over with."

* * *

The guests were all seated. They took their seats next to an old couple. Holly hadn't seen anyone she knew. Considering Jasmine was introduced by Rachel she wouldn't know if they had other mutual friends. 

"I hope this will happen to me one day." Holly looked around the room. She dodged this kind of stuff but everything looked perfect; the decorations, the food and everybody was eager to see the bride and the groom. Everybody looked happy. She quickly turned to Gail when she realized she had said it out loud. 

Gail smiled. "It's okay. You can tell me that." Holly was relieved. Gail had said that she hated weddings but deep down she too wanted a wedding when she was ready and the time was right. She wasn't going to freak out. _Besides Holly said one day, not right now_. 

"Is it legal here?" Gail wondered. She hadn't really paid any attention to it before but now that it concerned her she had to care. 

It took Holly a few second before she realized what Gail was asking. "Yeah it is." 

"I can only imagine how beautiful you look in a wedding dress." Gail said as she closed her eyes. "A Ballgown? It's a fairy tale dress. With a fitted bodice, flairs at the waist with a full skirt! Just perfect! Or the A-Line? Fitted bodice through the waist and flows out to the ground. Stunning! Either way you'll look beautiful!" She was humming and nodding her head to pictures she had in her mind. 

Holly laughed. "Hey! Are you sure that isn't what YOU want to wear on your wedding day? I definitely have mine and it sounds a little different than what you imagined." She didn't have to remind Gail that they had different taste in style. 

"Oh is it? Then how does it sound like?" Gail raised her eyebrows. Was that what she wanted to wear on her wedding day? She was almost married once but at that time she was on her shirt and pants. No special wedding dress and it was stupid. Wedding was never one of her priorities. 

"I will look beautiful in any type of wedding dress." Gail said with smug on her face. 

"I never doubt it even for a second." Holly nodded. 

"Then tell me what your wedding dress would be like?" 

Holly was about to answer that but was interrupted by the appearance of the minister who just walked in to the altar. "Here we go." 

The Groom and his Best Man took their place at the altar. A moment later the riffs was playing and everybody turned around to look at the Bride.

* * *

They were all being escorted to the hall where the bride and groom had their first dance. 

"Holly!" Jasmine called after the dance. "Thank you for coming." They hugged. 

"Congratulations Jaz! Too bad Lisa and Rachel couldn't come. Here's my friend, Gail Peck." 

Gail extended her hand. "Congratulations. The wedding was great." 

"Thank you for coming Gail. Yeah I was hoping they could." She turned around when someone called for her. "Send them my regards. I have to go." She said happily. "Thanks again for coming." She waved and went to greet other guests. 

"Let's have another drink and then I think we can go." Holly said as she looked around. She had seen Jasmine, congratulated her so they didn't have to wait until it was over. 

"No more drinks for me. Holly I need to take a leak." Gail had the urgency on her face that brought a chuckled out of Holly. "I drank a lot and don't you dare make me laugh right now." She shot Holly a look. She drank a lot when she waited for Holly at home and plus a few drinks she had here no wonder her bladder was full. 

Holly kept a straight face. "I think the ladies room is that way. I'll wait for you over there." She pointed to the less crowded area of the room. 

"Okay I'll be quick." Gail said as she walked hastily towards the ladies room. Holly heard she muttered 'excuse me' a few times until she was out of sight. 

Holly decided to sit at an empty table while waiting for Gail. Her mind wandered. She wasn't planning to ask Gail to come to her apartment but Gail had suggested it so it had to be fine with Gail. She had wanted to ask Gail to come over sometimes just to hang out but she thought Gail didn't want to because she never mentioned it not even once. _I should have asked her. Whether she says yes or no that's a different thing. You never know_. 

"Holly?" A female voice brought her back to reality. She looked up to the familiar voice. Her face lit up to see her best friend. 

"Lisa! Hey what are you doing here? I thought you said you couldn't make it." Holly gave Lisa a hug. 

"They postpone the meeting at the last minute. If I knew you were coming I would have come sooner!" Lisa said. "What about you? I thought you said you couldn't come. When I saw you I thought you were someone else." 

"Well change of plan. Jaz called me a few days ago. I couldn't say no." Holly shrugged. If it wasn't for Gail she wouldn't come here. 

"It's so good to see you. It's been a while since we hang out. We have a lot to catch up!" Lisa took a seat across from Holly. "We could have come together. Oh I came with Rachel. She's here somewhere." They looked around for Rachel. "Why are you sitting here alone anyway?" 

"Well I'm not here alone." Holly smiled. "I'm waiting for my plus one." 

"No way! Spit it out girl!" Lisa was excited. "Where is she? Which one?" 

"She went to the ladies but she should be here in a minute. You'll meet her in a bit but before you ask me one million dollar question let me get a drink first." Holly turned around to find Gail walking towards them. She sat back down. 

"What?" Lisa asked. Holly tilted her head to Gail who was getting closer to them. 

"Hey I'm sorry to keep you waiting. The line was way too long. It seems like everybody has leak problems at the same time." Gail was talking to Holly but her eyes were on Lisa. 

"Hey I'm Lisa, Holly's friend." Lisa extended her hand to Gail before Holly could introduce them, too eager for Gail's liking. 

"Gail this is my friend Lisa. Lisa this is Gail, my plus one for today." Gail shook Lisa's hand with a firm shake and a smile. 

"I'm so glad to meet you." Lisa said politely. 

Gail nodded. "Me too." She turned to Holly who was smiling. They hadn't bumped into any of Holly's friends since they got here but this wasn't a good time. Really wasn't a good time but Holly seemed thrilled and it would be rude if she asked to leave. 

"Why don't I get us a drink?" Gail offered. She had a feeling this would be a long conversation and their plan had to wait. 

Holly nodded. "Yeah sure thanks." Gail stood up and left. 

"Holly I think I'm switching team. I think your plus one is hot!" Holly followed Lisa's eyes to Gail. 

"You switching teams? Since when? What did I miss?" Rachel appeared out of nowhere and sat next to Lisa. 

"Since now. Check out Holly's new girl." 

Rachel nodded. "I see what you mean Lisa." They both were staring at Gail. "She's hot." 

Holly turned around to look where their eyes had been. "I know she is and I welcome you guys to bat in my team but you have to find your own girl because this one is already taken. She is mine." 

They both laughed. "Well I guess we can stop setting you up for dates now huh?" Lisa joked. 

Holly laughed. "Definitely. I'm done with blind dates!" 

"Wow you sound certain." 

"Well we are still in the process getting to know each other but I really like her and I want us to be more than friends." 

Gail came back with two glasses in her hands and put them on the table. "What are guys talking about and who is this?" She asked as soon as she sat down. 

"Oh here's my friend from college. This is Rachel. They're my best friends." 

Gail introduced herself. _Great. There's another one. Two's company, three's a crowd and four's a nuisance_. it wasn't like she didn't want to meet Holly's friends but this wasn't the time for it. 

"We were just talking about old stuff. Did you know that Holly was at the top of our class?" Gail smiled and shook her head. She could say she was surprised but she wasn't. "I find it interesting that Holly chooses to spend her career poking dead people." 

"Well I'm glad she chose to be a forensic pathologist or we wouldn't have met." It was true. By the way they were looking at her she wondered if Holly had told them about their relationship. She felt like they were judging her. 

"So Gail why don't you tell us more about yourself and your job?" Lisa asked and Holly encouraged her to share something. 

"I'm a cop." Gail said. "And I love my job. I'm still a rookie but I'm confident that I'll pass my probation." Gail sipped her wine. She could tell that they didn't think she was good enough for Holly. Suddenly her phone rang. She dug into her bag and looked at the name appeared on the screen. 

"I have to take this call." Gail raised her ringing phone in her hand and then excused herself. 

"Go easy on my girlfriend." Holly turned to see Gail made a beeline to the door. She wondered who the caller was. 

"I thought she was only your plus one for today." Rachel's eyes were on Holly. 

"Well she is both and she's mine." Holly turned to face her best friends. Holly never called Gail her girlfriend and so was Gail. 

"So have you two slept together?" Lisa asked all of the sudden. 

"What kind of question is that? Where did that come from?" Holly rolled her eyes. They hadn't gone that far. In fact things had been going too slow or rather flat for them. She avoided her friends stare. 

"Oh my God! You haven't!" Lisa laughed. "What's wrong? Is she a virgin or something? Tell us!" 

"It's not about that Lisa." Holly rather talked about something else and hoped Gail would come back soon. 

"Then what is it about?" 

"It's just not it." Holly didn't think that was the problem with Gail. Gail hadn't exactly come out yet. "Maybe she's not ready." 

"Wait a minute. She's straight?" They both shook their head. "Never fall in love with a straight girl. Holly that's the number one rule you should not break!" 

Holly shrugged. It wasn't like she could choose who to love. It just happened. Fate brought them together and she couldn't tell how grateful she was. 

"How long have you two been together? Well that is not accurate because you two haven't really been together in that sense but how long?" Lisa asked. 

"A few months." Holly gave a weak smile. 

"A few months and you guys still where you were a few months back?" Rachel said as if she could read Holly's thought. 

"You can say so. I think she's afraid." Holly said it. They were her best friends but sometimes they could be too judgemental. The reason she hadn't told them about Gail. 

"I get it she's gorgeous, no doubt about that but it's not going to last. You can get someone better than her Holly. We have a new doctor at my hospital. She just transferred. She's single and hot. I could set you up on a date with her." Rachel said. 

"What's that supposed to mean?" Holly frowned. She didn't like the way they talked about Gail. "Guys I like her very much and I don't want to go to any more blind dates. Besides just because she isn't a doctor doesn't mean she doesn't deserve your respect. And I like her because of who she is. She's not just a pretty face." 

"What I'm saying is it's good to have options. By the way things go right now you don't believe she's really serious about the relationship, do you? I mean what does she think about you? Are you just her friend or friends with benefit or she wants something more with you?" 

"Yeah Holly. How long are you willing to wait? What if after two or three years she is still not ready? Are you willing to waste your time waiting for her?" Lisa agreed with Rachel. 

Holly didn't say anything. They were going to talk about a lot of things after the wedding. Gail promised. 

"I say dump her before she dumps you." Lisa suggested. Holly almost chocked on her wine. 

"Oh my God! Guys! Nobody is going to dump anybody. And lower your voices. What if she heard you?" 

"It's time to get you off. Holly you're a doctor. I get it she's gorgeous but she's just a cop. You're out of her league. Look I know you want something uncomplicated and simple but you could get better." 

"So? I'm having fun! We're having fun. Don't worry about it." Holly said so that her friends would get off her back and rest their case. She didn't want to talk about this anymore. She knew what she wanted with Gail and she believed Gail wanted the same thing. 

"Okay have your fun but you should get out before she gets hurt." 

"No one is going to get hurt." 

"Well we'll see." Lisa laughed. She didn't think Holly and Gail would work out. 

Holly didn't realise Gail was standing behind her until Lisa suddenly stopped laughing. She turned around and the looked on Gail's face almost broke her heart. Lisa and Rachel were speechless. They didn't see Gail coming. 

Without saying anything Gail turned and left. Holly followed. 

"Gail, wait. Where are you going?" Holly tried to stop her. 

"Is that what you're doing Holly? You're just having fun?" Gail asked. 

"Gail, it's not what you think. How long have you been listening?" 

Gail shook her head. "It doesn't matter. I'm done having fun here." Gail walked to the coat roam. Holly followed her. 

"Gail, please let me explain." Holly pleaded as she watched Gail taking her coat from the coat girl. 

"I thought you were different but I guess I was wrong." Gail said. "Is that why? Do you think that I'm uneducated? Do you think I'm a blue collar and I'm out of your league?" The coat girl sensed something was happening slowly retreated to stand away from the couple. 

"No! I never said that!" 

"Whatever. I hope you have fun with your stupid friends! I don't think I can stand to be in the same room with you guys anymore." Gail tried to leave but Holly stopped her. 

"What are you saying?" Holly asked, regretted that things went bad so fast. 

"You're a doctor. You can figure it out. Oh come on Holly. Don't look so upset. You're just having fun." 

"Gail you're only." Holly didn't get a chance to finish her sentence. 

"I'm only what Holly? By the way thanks for asking me to be your plus one. This wedding was great. I had fun. Thanks. Plus one forever." 

"Gail." Holly watched as Gail stormed out of the room. The coat girl came closer and asked if Holly wanted her coat back too. She shook her head. "You only heard part of the conversation."

* * *

She wasn't the kind who cried when things didn't go well for her but she had a hard time to contain her tears in her eyes. "Don't cry Gail." She told herself. She walked as fast as she could. Those words hurt because it came out of the mouth from someone she cared about, someone she loved. If it was someone else like that idiot boob job doctor she could care less. 

"Are you okay?" A guy came up to her. Gail looked at him. He looked almost like he cared which made Gail ticked off. 

"It's none of your damn business!" Gail snarled at him and walked away. The guy was stunned and muttered 'psycho' before turning and walked towards the house. Gail kept walking without knowing where to go. 

"She didn't mean that. You heard her wrong." Gail was shaking her head. Her phone rang and she took it out of her bag and saw it was Holly. She pressed the end call button and shoved it back inside her bag. She heard it rang but she didn't want to answer it. She crossed her arms and tried to compose herself. She kept walking until she was calm. 

She looked for a taxi. She needed to get away and gathered her thoughts. She knew where to go. She waved when she saw one and got inside and told the taxi driver her destination.

* * *

"Gail?" Dov was surprised to see Gail walked through his front door. "What are you doing here?" 

"You have short term memory issues Epstein? You invited me." Gail casually took her coat off and threw herself on the couch. 

"Yeah I did but I thought you said you couldn't come." Just a moment ago he talked to Gail on the phone and she told him she was at a friend's wedding. He was mad that Gail didn't tell him sooner. He glanced at Gail next to him. "What happened?" 

"Just this morning I thought my life was doing pretty great." She shrugged. "What are we playing today?" She was clearly avoiding his question. 

Dov sensed something was wrong but didn't push it. "Whatever you want to play. I'm game. Oh Traci and Andy are on their way. They sponsored food." 

_Speak of the devil_. They heard laughter and the two women walked through the door. "Oh come on Trace! That is simply not true!" Andy shook her head. "Gail! I thought you said you couldn't come. If I knew I would've bought you cheese puffs." They were carrying two paper bags full of food in it. 

"Food!" Dov threw his hands up in the air while getting up. "I love food! Chris! What are you doing in there? Come out! Food's here!" He went through the bags looking for something and grinned when he found a bag of chips. "Mostly junk." He muttered as he popped it open. 

Gail glanced at Dov who ate loudly next to her. "Didn't you eat yesterday Dov?" Gail asked as she picked the games for them. 

"Hey guys!" Chris said as he closed his bedroom door. "Gail you look stunning!" He commented as soon as he saw Gail. He took a seat next to Gail. 

"Stop staring at me Chris Diaz or I'll poke your eye out." Gail said as she glanced at Chris. 

"I just think you look beautiful." Chris shrugged when he saw Dov leaned forward to look at him. He meant what he said. 

Gail laughed bitterly. "Oh Chris, thank you. You're so adorable. You know that right?" She patted Chris on his cheek.


	13. Chapter 13

THE TALK will happen and I know they need to be honest with each other. In the meantime, please bear with me & Golly :) 

annabanana6: Yes we can skip those dramas. I'll try to cut it short. :) P/S: I love that taser my eyes line. I think it's funny.

Luck: Of course :) 

Disclaimer: I love Gail Peck and Holly Stewart. I do not own Rookie Blue or any of its amazing characters. 

Chapter 13 

Holly finally faced up to the problem and went to look for Gail at the station. She rarely went up here unless she had to and this couldn't wait any longer. She had given Gail enough time to sulk, a week to be exact so Gail had to talk to her even if she didn't want to. 

"Um excuse me." Holly called an officer who just walked passed her. He was reading something on his notebook. The guy looked familiar but Holly couldn't remember where she had seen him before. She had been at too many crime scenes. 

The male officer stopped and turned. "Yes? Can I help you?" He said with a smile on his face. "Aren't you Doctor Stewart, the pathologist?" Of course she was immediately recognized. 

"Yes that's me." She gave the officer a nervous smile. 

"Are you delivering a report?" Holly's eyes followed the officer's to the report in her hand. 

"Oh I'm not. Actually I'm looking for Officer Peck." Holly's eyes were everywhere, hoping to see Gail walked out from any of the rooms there. 

"I'm sorry she's not available. Can I help you?" He asked again, shutting the notebook in his hands. "Is this about one of her cases?" 

"Is she out on patrol? Then it's okay. I'll come back later." Holly quickly turned to leave but the officer stopped her. 

"I'm afraid not. She won't be back later." He said. "In fact she wasn't here for the past few days." 

"What do you mean?" She clutched the report to her chest. "Did something happen? Is she okay?" Suddenly everything bad that could possibly happen to a police officer crossed her mind. She hadn't heard anything about any incidents for the past few days. 

"Oh it's nothing bad but she's okay I think. Gail accepted, I mean Officer Peck is on a mission." He corrected himself. "She's on undercover." He found out about this from Detective Swarek on Wednesday after pestering the detective the whole day. 

"What!?" Holly couldn't hide her surprised. "Since when?" Her hope to see Gail shattered. 

"She was still here on Tuesday. So I guess since Wednesday." That was all he knew. Detective Swarek refused to disclose any more information. He watched the doctor carefully. "Is there anything I can do for you doctor?" 

"For how long?" Her voice stuck in her throat. "Do you know when she'll be back?" Holly ignored him. 

The officer shook his head. "I'm sorry I don't know. It could be a few weeks. It could be months. It depends on the mission." He looked at Holly. "Look if it makes you feel any better she didn't tell me either." He said as he looked at Holly who looked disappointed to know that Gail was on undercover mission and somehow forgot to tell her. _Gail has some explaining to do when she comes back_, he thought. 

"She won't be able to contact you and vice versa. So do you want to leave a message or a note?" He asked when he saw Holly hesitated. "I could convey your message to her when she comes back." 

"It's okay. It's just a personal matter. I'll wait until Gail comes back. Thanks for letting me know, officer." Holly turned and quickly walked even though she heard the officer was calling for her. 

_A personal matter and on first name basis? Are they friends? It looks like it._ He thought as he watched the pathologist disappeared when she made a turn at the corner. _What could that be? _He was still thinking about it when his shift was over later that day.

* * *

Holly threw her files on her desk. Rodney was walking passed her office did a double take as he heard the loud thump. "Is everything okay doc?" He asked as he stopped at the door, concerned. 

Holly just nodded and waved. She didn't notice Rodney was there. He shrugged and then left. She sat down with her head in her hands. That was why Gail hadn't replied any of her phone calls and text messages. She shook her head. She couldn't believe Gail just gone without telling her anything and here she was trying to get in touch with her like an idiot. If it wasn't for her went looking for Gail at the station she wouldn't have known that she had left. 

"If only I was a few days early!" She wanted to scream. "But you have a few days to tell me! Why didn't you!" She shook her head sadly. 

She leaned back against her chair. Gail refused to talk to her after the wedding. She didn't even reply any of her messages. All of this happened because of a stupid argument. It shouldn't have happened that way. She had no idea how things went from great to worst in just a short time. They had fun on their way to the wedding. Gail even asked about her favourite movies. She figured Gail had wanted to spend time watching movies with her. They talked about wedding dresses and then they danced and laughed enjoying each other company. 

When her best friends showed up at the wedding she was surprised but glad. She was hoping for them to meet Gail but things didn't go well as she had hoped. "It was just a bad timing." 

"Who am I kidding?" She wasn't sure things would turn out differently even if they met under different circumstances. She slowly opened her top drawer to find Gail's favourite cheese puffs in it. She stared at it. 

"Gail, how am I going to fix this?"

* * *

_Somewhere in Canada_

"I'm surprised you accepted this job." Chris said as he sat on a chair enjoying the view in front of them. When he was offered to take part on this job he didn't think twice. He thought this would be a good way for him to get first-hand experience on an undercover mission. 

"Why? You don't think I can do this?" Gail asked, cold. She surprised herself when she agreed. She didn't know how much doing this for the benefit of her career or wanting to run away from her feelings made her accepted the job. Staff Sergeant Best believed she was the right person for this job so she took it. The fact that they weren't allowed to have any form of contact from their family and friends made it more appealing to her. Maybe it was the latter. 

"You know that's not what I mean." Chris said. "Actually I was glad it was you. They told me I'd get a partner but they didn't tell me who it would be." He added. "I thought it was Andy." 

"Why is that?" Gail hadn't had the mood for a conversation but it just the two of them now. She might as well get used to having him around. Even though Dov and Chris was roommate she spent more time with Dov than she did with Chris. She hung around with Dov more often than the others but that didn't make them less a friend than Dov was. 

Chris hesitated with his answer. "Well first I know you. Second it gives us a chance to get to know each other better." He smiled. He had wanted to do that for a long time but he hadn't had the opportunity. Gail always had to be somewhere else with someone else or they just hung out in groups with the other three or just disappeared like on every lunch break every day. With Gail he had to know the right time to approach her or he would get bullets coming his way in no time. 

Gail turned to look at Chris. She chuckled. "What are you trying to say Chris?" 

Chris shrugged. It wouldn't be wise if he just told her. It wouldn't be right. Despite being friends since the academy he knew so little about the blonde. He didn't even know if she was seeing anyone. Asking her outright was like jumping from a five-storey building to a concrete floor hoping to come out alive. He was afraid Gail would think he was being nosy. It could be over before it even started. 

"What I mean is we can be better friends. I mean with the shifts and crazy things that happens on the job every day we have little time to actually have a conversation about us. Don't you think?" That was a diplomatic answer. He didn't need to rush. The mission could take months. So he had tons of opportunity. He really didn't see this coming but took it with open arms. _Thank you, God_. 

Gail nodded. It was true what he said. Even though she wasn't keen on 'getting to know each other better' part with Chris but she would take this time to clear her head and to think about her next course of action. She had left some things hanging back home that needed to be addressed. 

"So does your family know you're undercover?" Chris tried to keep the conversation going when Gail was being quiet. 

"You're well aware we can't tell anyone about this mission." Gail spoke. "Even if we could, do you think I would tell them?" Her parents would know. 

"Yeah you're right. Even if you don't tell them they would've known considering their position in the police force." 

"I normally would take that as an insult when someone suggesting my parents is abusing their power and position but not this time." Gail put her sunglasses on and relaxed. 

"That's not what I mean." He always had to be on the defensive whenever it was with Gail. That was something he wanted to change. 

Gail gestured as to say 'let it go'. She had other things on her mind than bickering with Chris about her parents abusing their powers. She glanced at her watch. 

"Why hasn't he come yet?" They were supposed to get a visit from a drug dealer who would set them up with his supplier. They needed to establish their connection in the ring before they could be trusted. They had been here for a few days already but the guy hadn't showed up yet. 

"He will come. Don't worry. We did everything right so far." 

"I'm not worried. I'm just tired of having this small talk with you." Gail spoke. She took Chris by surprised. "Why don't we go walk by the beach like a good couple we are?" She laughed. "They could be watching us. Making sure we're not a fake. We have to act like one." 

Chris relaxed when he realised Gail was joking. "Sure. I can be a good boyfriend but first I need to get change. I think this khaki looks weird on me." 

"What are you talking about? It looks good on you." Gail said without putting any thought on it hoping Chris wouldn't go change. She wanted to go to the beach. 

Chris looked down at his pants. "You like it?" 

"Well it doesn't matter. I'm not the one wearing it." Gail took a deep breath and stood up. "I'm not waiting for you. I'm going." Gail said as she walked down the stairs. _Why did you pack it and bring it here if you don't like it?_ Gail shook her head. 

"Hey wait for me!" Chris ran down the stairs to catch up with Gail.

* * *

"That wasn't such a bad idea going to the beach." Chris said as he unlocked the door. Gail was right. The guy had been watching them since the first day. He approached them when they were walking the beach. He said he had to be more cautious about people he introduced to his supplier. There had been too much of police raids lately. "Jamie bought it. We're good." 

"You're welcome." Gail threw herself on the couch. "We should get something to eat. I'm hungry." Her stomach made a funny sound. She already missed Holly's cooking. 

"I can cook. You just get clean up and rest. I'll call you when I'm done." Chris offered as he headed to the kitchen. 

"Suit yourself but you know I have allergies right?" Gail stretched out and yawned. She went back lying on the couch and stared blankly at the ceiling. 

"Yeah no eggs and no tomatoes. I got it!" He shouted from the kitchen. "Gail! Why don't you take a shower while I cook? It could take a while." He opened the fridge. "We pretty much have everything in here. I was surprised they actually stocked up." When they first got here he found it had been fully stocked. He didn't get the chance to cook as they had been busy checking out the town every day. He took out some vegetables and meat and put them in the sink. "What do you want to eat anyway?" 

"Gail?" He thought Gail was already gone to her room so he started cooking. He used to cook for his parents back at his hometown before he went to the academy. Dov wasn't such a bad cook but he usually prepared for them both. It took him almost two hours to finish. 

"Alright. I'm done!" He satisfied with what he saw. He tasted it and nodded a few times. "Delicious!" He washed his hands at the sink and dried them on the towel. He was about to go get a shower when he saw Gail. 

"Oh Gail." He saw Gail was asleep on the couch. He walked slowly to squat in front of her and admired what was in front of him. He pushed a strand of hair that fell on her face. "You look lovely." He smiled and stood up. He better be gone before she woke up and caught him looking at her. That would be awkward. 

He took half an hour in the shower. It felt so good after spending some time on the beach. It was hot. He picked out a nice shirt and a short pant. He combed his hair while humming some songs and sprayed his favourite perfume. After looking at himself in the mirror and was certain he looked good he went to wake Gail up. 

"Gail?" He touched Gail's shoulder gently. He shook it until he got a reaction from Gail. 

"Go away!" Gail said as she tried to turn side. Chris stood up and crossed his arms. 

"Food's ready. You better get up or I'll eat them all." 

"Be my guest! I'll call pizza delivery." 

"It's your loss. It's delicious and we're not at Peck's Residence. Just to remind you we haven't gotten our phone yet. Unless you have an extra phone I see no way for you to call pizza delivery." 

"I hate you." Chris took a step back when he saw Gail finally opened her eyes. "When are we getting it?" 

"No you'll thank me." Gail sat up straight. "We had contact so Detective Boyd should be here later today with everything we need including the phone. Why didn't he give us the phone on our first day here anyway? Are you going to get clean up? I'm hungry." He said as Gail didn't move a muscle. 

"Jeez Chris! Stop giving orders." Gail shot him a look. "You're worse than my mother." He smirked. She stretched one last time and got up. 

"God, you smell good." Gail commented on Chris's perfume when she walked passed him to the bathroom. 

"You're the only one who likes it." Chris muttered as he remembered how Andy and Traci complained about the smell before.

* * *

_THE NEXT DAY_

_At Holly's apartment_

Holly was lying on the couch when she heard her doorbell rang. She ignored it. Then she heard a knock. Then her phone rang. She reached for it on the table and looked at the name appeared on the screen. 

'Lisa is calling…' She groaned. 

She didn't answer it instead she put it back on the table. The ringing stopped so was the knocking on the door. She didn't want to see any of them for now. She just wanted to sit on her couch and watched good show on television. Her phone beep when a text message came in. She read it. 

'_We know you're in there. Can you open the door please? We need to talk._' It was Rachel. 

They hadn't talked since the wedding. She was mad with herself more than to her friends. She should have been more supportive of Gail. If she did things could turned out different. Instead she was sitting her alone on her couch rather than watching horror movies with Gail and to make things worse, Gail was nowhere to be found. A second text message came in. 

'_Seriously Holly. We will kick open this door if you don't open it in five minutes._' That was Lisa. 

"Kick opens the door?" Holly said as soon as she opened the door. "You never kick a ball in your life." 

Lisa and Rachel sigh a relieved. Holly had been avoiding them all week. "Well that's our last resort. Thanks. It'd be hard to kick when you're wearing heels. Can we come in?" 

Holly moved a bit to let her friends in. She closed the door and walked slowly to where her friends sat. "I haven't been shopping so there's nothing in the kitchen." She was too lazy to make them anything. "I have water if you like." 

They both glanced at each other. This was more serious than they thought. "Holly for a hundred times we are really sorry." Rachel said as she went to the kitchen and returned with two glasses of water in her hands. She put them on the table. 

"I thought she wasn't serious about you. As your best friend I don't want to see you get hurt." Lisa didn't think she did anything wrong. Maybe she had chosen the wrong words or approached things in a wrong way. Holly looked up at Lisa but looked away when their eyes met. 

"What makes you think she wasn't? You just met her. You jumped the gun Lisa." Holly understood the 'don't want you to get hurt' part but she felt there was something else that Lisa didn't tell. "You even tell me to dump her." She didn't know how much Gail had listened to their conversation but even if she was there it wasn't going to turn out good either. 

"Holly, Lisa just wanted what's best for you." Rachel tried to defend Lisa. Holly shot her a look. 

"Really? Shouldn't that be making me happy instead of making me feel miserable like this? Me being happy means that Gail Peck has to be in the equation. You guys are a doctor, how is that so hard for you to understand?" She repeated what Gail had said to her. 

Holly needed to get things out of her chest so they both listened patiently. 

"This isn't the first time I'm dating a police officer. Why are you guys seemed to be against her so much? You were supportive when I was with the last one." She couldn't find a reason why. She could tell that Gail was trying to be nice to them but they just jumped down her throat the minute she was gone. "Why should this time be any different?" Holly just couldn't understand why. They were so excited when she dated the last one even though it didn't work out. 

"I respect what she does. It's not easy to be a police officer. I'm not saying that other jobs are easy but it takes a lot of you to go out there and put yourself on the front line. She deals with every kind of situations that requires quick and good judgment and sometimes you only have a second to decide how to act. Does that sound familiar to you, doctor? That's what she does every day. It's not easy and she's not just a police officer but she is a good one." 

"She may not be a doctor but that doesn't mean she deserves no respect." She added. "And she is not something uncomplicated and simple." 

"We know that but she wasn't supposed to hear it. It was our private conversation." Lisa said. 

"Is that your defence? That she wasn't supposed to hear it? So now this is her fault?" Holly crossed her arms. 

"No that's not what I mean. I'm sorry." Lisa apologized. "Look, we may have judged things a bit too early. I'm sure there's more to her than meets the eye." _I don't get you and Gail together, Holly but she seems to be important to you_. 

"You guys can be judgmental sometimes. That's why I didn't say anything about Gail." Holly tried to calm down. She didn't want to lose her friends and she wanted Gail in her life too. "Gail is special. She means a lot to me." Maybe it was her fault after all. If she had told them about Gail maybe they wouldn't be so surprised and tried to judge her the minute they met. 

"We know that now. We are really sorry." Rachel said for the both of them. 

"Yeah we shouldn't have said what we said." Lisa added. She went to sit next to Holly. "I'm sorry." 

"I'm not the one you should be apologizing to." Holly gave them a weak smile. This hadn't happened before but she hoped it wouldn't happen again. They had crossed the line this time and they knew it. 

"If you want us to meet Gail." Lisa said. She didn't sound so sure about it. 

Holly shook her head. "She didn't reply my texts. She didn't answer her phone calls. She doesn't want to see me. Why in the world do you think she wants to see you?" 

"You guys broke up?" Rachel asked, surprised. 

Holly shrugged. She hoped not. "I went looking for her at the station yesterday. I was told she went on undercover mission." 

"She didn't tell you?" 

"I told you she didn't reply my texts. She was avoiding me. I figured she needed time from all of this." 

"For how long?" 

"I don't know. It could be for weeks or months." 

"I'm sure she will be back and everything will be fine between you two." Rachel meant it for comfort but Holly wasn't sure if that was true. If only she had gone to see Gail a few days earlier. She had no idea what to do. _Gail_, _why do you have to run?_

Holly felt like she could have done better or handled things differently. She should have been firmed instead of telling them she was just having fun which was not true. If she were in Gail's shoes she would be offended too knowing that someone was with you because she just wanted to have fun. 

"It's just a mess up misunderstanding. I'm sure she will understand." Lisa tried to comfort Holly. She knew Holly didn't mean what she said back at the wedding about her just having fun. It was more that Holly tried to make them stop telling her to break up with Gail. 

"You better hope I can fix this because I'm dead serious about Gail!" 

"Yeah if there's anything we can do just tell us." Rachel said. She and Lisa had agreed to make amends with Gail before they came here. 

"Holly, I don't want to put any ideas into your head but did it ever occur to you that maybe this is her way of telling you that you guys are no longer together?" Lisa said. "I mean why didn't she tell you before she go? She could have text you. You know, some people are like that. They don't want to say it to your face so they just keep things hanging. For all you know you're over." 

Holly didn't want to believe that but Lisa might be right. What if Gail had given up on her and this was her way of staying away from her?

* * *

Dov was mad at both Gail and Chris for not telling him that they were going away for an undercover mission. He remembered yesterday's encounter with Doctor Stewart. 

_Why did she look for Gail?_ He hadn't known Gail had a good relationship with the pathologist. When he thought about it Gail was willing and always offering herself if there was any evidence needed to be sent down to the morgue without much resistance from the blonde. 

The way the pathologist looked so concern and a little down when she heard Gail wasn't due to be back until a few months for the mission made him even more curious. Gail never mentioned about her. 

"Wait a minute!" He sat upright. "There was one time when I saw them together. Well not together like alone but together in a suspicious way." Back then he wasn't best buddies with Gail. It was at the murder scene where the pathologist asked to speak to Gail privately. He did ask but got 'it's none of your business' reply from Gail. 

"Dov are you alright?" Traci touched his shoulder. He jumped a little. Andy and Traci both looked at him. "What are you thinking about? You look very concern and serious." 

"Oh come on. Are you missing them that bad?" Andy laughed. Dov shot her a look. 

"No. I could live without the poster boy Chris Diaz and definitely couldn't be more grateful for some alone time without the snarky cold yet charming Gail Peck." He said. "I was thinking about something else." 

"What?" Andy and Traci both asked. 

He wasn't sure if what he thought was right. He didn't know if telling them would make things better or worse. Besides if it was true then it wasn't his place to tell. 

"I was thinking what the two of you doing in my apartment so early in the morning!" Dov said. "How did you get in anyway?" 

"Oh we thought you might need some company now that Gail and Chris just dumped you." Andy joked. "You didn't lock your door, Officer Epstein!" 

"Ha ha ha. You are so not funny. Unless you can play video games like Gail or cook good food like Chris, I don't think there's anything you can do to help my poor soul. But since you guys bring food I guess it's not such a bad thing to have your company." He reached for the pizza Traci put on the table. 


	14. Chapter 14

Enjoy :)

Disclaimer: I love Gail Peck and Holly Stewart. I do not own Rookie Blue or any of its amazing characters.

CHAPTER 14

"I wouldn't eat those if I were you." Dov stopped typing on his keyboard and brought his attention to Gail who just walked passed his desk holding a bag of chips she took from Chris's desk.

"Why? Were they in the toilet?" Gail asked casually and sat down. She took one and put it in her mouth. She chewed slowly while staring at Dov dared him to say something.

"Well no." Dov answered hesitantly. Chris looked on. It belonged to a girl he took statement from this morning about a possible missing person. She was a night worker but he didn't see anything wrong if Gail wanted to eat those chips.

"So? I don't really care. I'm hungry!" Gail snarled at Dov and then looked down at her computer screen. Dov rolled his eyes. Gail had been missed when she went undercover but now that she was back with her old attitude he wished she had gone back to undercover.

"Have you guys heard that Cruz asked for a transfer? Yesterday was her last day. She didn't even say goodbye to us." Dov changed the topic. "I'm hurt."

"You hurt? You don't look like it. Besides how often did you say hi to her when she was here anyway?" Gail said without looking but knew Dov was looking at her so she grinned. She knew he just wanted to make light conversation. It felt good to tease him.

"Hey guys!" Andy said as she took her seat. "What's up? Gail, Chris welcome back! We've missed you! Especially Dov. You should have seen how he sat there alone on his couch looking all hurt and lonely because his two buddies left without saying a word."

Dov groaned. "Oh come on! I did not! That's lame Andy." Andy chuckled. Chris patted Dov's back.

"So now that I'm back you can't wait for me to go undercover again." Gail said as if she could hear what Dov was thinking. He was quiet.

"Thanks. I was hoping they gave us an off day." Chris said. He wasn't really tired but it would be great to have one day rest. "Right, Gail?" Gail shrugged her shoulders, didn't really mind.

Dov's eyes moved between his two friends. There had been exchanges between them since this morning that he thought was a bit odd. "I was just telling them that Cruz left yesterday. I heard the one who will be transferred here is someone from 27 Division." Dov said as to answer Andy while keeping his attention to them.

"Yeah I heard they talked about it this morning. We'll get a replacement by today or tomorrow." Chris chipped in.

Gail paid no attention to what her friends were saying. She had barely talked to Cruz. She glanced over at her phone on the desk. The calls and text messages had stopped a few days before she had left. The last she got them was a text message. She hadn't checked her phone before she left. She somehow hoped to see her phone rang. She got up to get herself another cup of coffee without noticing all their eyes were on her.

"What's up with Gail? Did you notice she kept looking at her phone like she's waiting for something?" Andy whispered to Dov. She noticed Gail was unusually unlike the happy cold Gail since a few months ago. Her eyes followed Gail to the pantry.

Dov followed Andy's stare then shrugged his shoulders. He wished he knew but he didn't. He would have asked but wasn't sure if it was his place to do so. "I have no idea what's going on in her head. That's Gail Peck you're asking me. It's a miracle if she lets anyone in her head." He went back typing on his computer.

"I suspect something is up. I think she started acting like this since before she went undercover, that day when we hung out at your apartment. Did you remember? She wore a dress that day. I thought it was weird for her to wear a dress on Sunday playing video games at your apartment. The next day she just transformed, changed into her usual self. I mean the hard-to-deal-with usual self. " Andy stared blankly, tried to play that memories in her head.

"Yeah I remember. She looked pretty." Chris grinned. Dov starred at him. "What? I'm just saying." He crossed his arms defensively. "It's a fact."

"That's the only thing you noticed? Shame on you." Dov knew Gail went to a wedding because Gail told him so when he called her that afternoon. He had been waiting for Gail at his apartment for their game but Gail didn't show up so he called her. She said she was at a friend's wedding but she didn't say who she went out with. She didn't sound upset on the phone but he was surprised to see Gail at his front door not long after their phone conversation. He had guessed something was wrong because Gail looked upset even though she tried to hide it.

"Oh come on Dov. You know don't you?" Andy frustrated when she saw Dov just shaking his head. "I know you guys get pretty close after that talk you had with her." She crossed her arms. "Don't deny it."

Dov froze. "What the hell Chris?" He quickly turned at Chris. "Why did you tell?"

Chris shrugged like he didn't care. "It wasn't a secret that you two didn't get along. I didn't have to tell her. She guessed it. You didn't notice that? Well shame on you." He smirked. Glad he could throw one back at Dov.

"Look all I know is that she went to a wedding with a friend and something happened. That's all." Dov didn't elaborate. It would be wise on his part to keep his mouth shut. He wouldn't say anything until at least he knew what was going on. "And don't go telling her I'm telling you this. I don't want her to think I'm prying into her life. She'll kick my ass."

Andy chuckled. "We are her friends and we care for her well-being and no she won't kick your ass."

"In video games!" Dov added. Gail was very good and she literally kicked his ass that Sunday and every other day when they had a contest. The only time he could beat Gail was during trivia game.

"Oh I thought she went out on a date." Chris said all of a sudden. "Do you know if she's seeing anyone?" He tried not to look obvious he was fishing for information. Things didn't go well for them during their undercover operation but they agreed to keep it between themselves.

"How would I even know that!" Dov raised his hands in desperation at Chris's question. "You went undercover with her for two months and you didn't think to ask her? And you didn't even tell me you were going by the way." He added, was still mad at Chris for not telling.

"I tried but she was a little reluctant. She was avoiding." Chris remembered one time he asked. Gail stared at him and told him to mind his own business. Her silent spoke volume but he didn't know who it was.

"I think she's been going out with someone but I don't know who it is. Remember that dinner at the park? That could be the reason she's acting weird." Andy chipped in. "I doubt she'd tell Traci. Speaking of Traci have you guys seen her?"

"She went to booking. Andrews needs a hand." Chris explained.

"Why don't you ask her when she gets back here, Chris?" Dov said, not realizing Gail was on her way there. He wondered how and why he suddenly became the sources of everything Gail Peck. "I'm sure she'll be happy to answer you."

"What could it possibly be that I'd be happy to answer you?" Gail looked at Chris who looked surprised. He stuttered for a response. Gail sat down. She looked at the three of them who grew quiet at her presence.

"Can I have some of those chips?" Chris blurted out his answer. Dov and Andy were shaking their heads. Chris reached for the chips and put it into his mouth.

Gail rolled her eyes. She knew that wasn't the question. Before she could say anything, Detective Swarek walked in the front door with a handful of old men and women trailing behind him. The usually quiet station was suddenly buzzing with conversation among them.

"There's a tour bus just been robbed a couple of hours ago. I need some of you to help get the statement from these victims." He gestured to the people behind him. "The more details we know the faster we know who did it and the faster they can go." Detective Swarek shouted over the noise as he walked to his office. The station had been pretty crowded and he wanted them to go as fast as they could.

Everybody got up upon hearing the instruction and went to get themselves someone to question. Gail found herself a married couple. She told them to sit and get comfortable while she got them coffee. "Here." She handed them each one a cup of coffee. She looked at the elderly couple probably in their seventies. The woman looked uncomfortable and a little bit shaky while the old man was blowing on his hot coffee looking more relaxed.

"I'm sorry. I don't know why I'm suddenly so shaky." The old woman apologized and smiled at Gail. She noticed Gail had been staring at her.

"You're in shock. You were robbed at gunpoint and you watched two of your friends get beaten up and now you're in a police station. Plus you're old." Gail said as they glanced at each other. "It's okay to feel shaky."

"Well when you put it like that." The old woman looked surprised at Gail's directness. She blew on her coffee and took a sip. Gail sat down in front of them.

"So if you're ready, let's get started. You heard the Detective. The faster we know who did it the sooner you guys can go home." Gail took out her notebook from the drawer and leaned forward. They both nodded.

"I'm Officer Peck and you are …" Gail introduced herself.

"I'm Constance." The old woman said and glanced at the old guy next to him.

"I'm Walter." The old guy said.

"Walter, Constance. I take it you two are married." Gail made an assumption.

"Hell no!" Walter cut her words. "We are um what do you call it?" He gestured with his hand and turned at Constance next to him for some help.

"Frenemies you idiot." Constance rolled her eyes. "We hated each other forty years now." Walter nodded.

Gail sighed. "I'll put it in my note. If something happens to any of you then we know who we should look for."

"Okay so let's start with your belongings. Is there anything missing?" Gail asked.

Walter mentioned his cash, watch and his phone. He claimed to not have any valuable in his travel bag. Constance on the other hand took a moment. "My watch, my phone and my diamond ear studs. He even took my wedding rings!" She showed Gail her hands without any rings on it. "I always wear the one from my last marriage. It's my favourite."

"Three rings, three marriages. I told you to leave them at home. It's not wise to bring your valuable things with you when you travel." Walter said.

"He has a point." Gail chipped in. She sensed that Walter wasn't too happy about something.

"Well at least I've been married! Not like the bachelor of the year here!" She glanced over to Walter. "Oh lucky girl. You still have that special day ahead of you. Big party, friends, family." Constance said as she looked happily at Gail.

Gail had had enough of it. "An omen, divorce, being dumped at the altar and public embarrassment." Gail smiled at Constance who looked surprised. "Oh yeah if I may add to the list; meeting your other half's idiot friends, being called simple, uninteresting and uncomplicated. Better yet, you find out later that the one you think you're in love with only be with you because they just want to have fun. Yeah it sounds pretty heavenly."

"It sounds like you had it rough but that shouldn't stop you for embracing your future or a thought of having a happy marriage. You don't know what life has in store for you." Constance tried to make her point.

"Oh yes I do. Uncertainty, more heartbreak and last but not least, kids."

"What's wrong with kids?" Constance asked. She was surprised at Gail's outlook on life. "There will be a time in your life that you will want kids on your own. I have two children from my first marriage and three adorable grandchildren."

"I haven't been around adorable children lately. I guess we're living in a different world then." She hadn't really keen on kids.

"Now you, I like." Walter interrupted Gail who glanced at him then to Constance clearly didn't like what he just said a bit. "I've seen it all and I've been through it all."

"Walter! Don't encourage her!" Constance slapped his arm.

"But I'm still here. You're going to be just fine." He added, much to the dismay of his friend. Gail smiled.

"Did you notice anything suspicious before you boarded the bus?" Gail asked going back to her questioning. One day wasn't enough if they wanted to talk about relationship and marriage.

They shook their head. "No. Everything looked normal. Everybody was excited. Why? You already have a suspect?"

Gail made some notes. "I can't comment on an ongoing investigation but I can assure you that we are looking at every possible motive. That means every person on the bus will be checked out. No exception. There is nothing to be worried about."

"I think I know what that means. I've read a lot of crime novels." Constance smiled. "Could it be an inside job? The bus driver looks a little suspicious."

_Oh no, please don't start_. Gail looked up from her notebook. _Don't we love crime novels_. "I thought you said everything looked normal."

"Well it was but the driver kept checking his watch. You know, it's like he was waiting or expecting something." Constance was eager to tell her theories. "He was friendly at first but after I asked him about it he suddenly was quiet. You know, like he's hiding something."

"I would too if some stranger just poked her nose into my business. Let them do their job Agatha Christie! I'm sure they'll be looking into it." Walter snapped at Constance.

Gail sighed. "Thank you for your input. I'll put it in my notes." She looked on as they bickered with each other like a married couple. She excused herself and went to see Detective Swarek to fill him in on what she gathered from the elderly couple. She came back to offer them a fresh cup of coffee but they turned it down.

"If you remember anything else that might help the case please let me know." Gail said to them as they nodded. Detective Swarek had ordered them to be in the briefing room in ten minutes.

"Hey folks, you're all free to go. Transportation has been arranged and there are cars waiting outside." Gail appeared at the door where all of them had been waiting for the past few hours. They all sighed a relieved upon hearing they had been cleared to go. They had their suspect in custody so they were being released.

"That's great! So I guess you know who did it huh?" Walter said as he stood up and put his coat around him. The others also didn't waste any more time. Their vacation had turned into a nightmare. Last thing they wanted was to spend the night at the police station.

"Of course they know who did it. That's why we're going home." Constance said to Walter as she picked up her bag on the floor. One by one nodded at Gail as they passed her at the door.

"I'm just asking." He shrugged his shoulders at Gail. He gave Gail one last smile and then left.

"What?" Gail said as Constance stopped in front of her.

"You're too young to be this cynical. Find a friend. Have fun once in a while." She said as she turned to leave.

"Oh you mean like Walter? You two hate each other." Gail retorted.

"I don't hate him. He's my plus one." The old woman smiled.

_A plus one?_ There was only one person in her mind when she heard that word. Sadly they hadn't spoken to each other for a while. Gail's mind wandered.

Constance smirked. She knew she had hit a soft spot. "Whoever that is you're thinking of, that person might be the one. You don't think about a person unless he or she means something to you. Only you know."

Gail crossed her arms. "Have you ever thought about marrying Walter?"

Constance squinted. "What?"

"He seems to be the only one who can stand you where your three ex-husbands couldn't."

Constance laughed. "That would be a terrible idea. I think we better off as friends. You young lady, on the other hand is a different story."

"You're going to be late." She reminded the old woman. "They're waiting."

"Trust me sweetheart, life is way too long to go through it alone and it's too short to mull over it. If you seek for happiness there's only one way to do it. Go for it."

Gail shrugged. "I'll take that into consideration." Constance shook her head at the stubbornness of her words then left, leaving Gail stood crossed arms at the door. She stood there thinking for a moment. Then closed the door and went to her desk.

"Gail let's hang out at the Penny after shift." Andy suggested. "Thank God we got the guy."

Gail nodded.

* * *

_At the Penny  
_

Gail had been thinking about what Constance said earlier at the station. She knew there was truth in what Constance said. She was happy when she was with Holly. Holly was the one popped up in her mind when Constance talked about being with someone. She thought she was over Holly but she doubted it. Holly was the one. She was Holly plus one.

_Holly. _She uttered that name over and over in her mind. _Speak of the devil_, she thought as her face lit up when she saw the woman she had been thinking about everyday just walked into the bar. Her eyes observed the woman. She hadn't changed a bit. She was exactly how Gail had her pictured in her mind. She was the same woman when she last saw her. She watched Holly walking towards the counter.

_Should I go or should I not. Should I go or should I not. Should I go or should I not. I should go_, she thought as her heart beat so fast she felt like it was going to explode.

"Hello." Gail said as she approached Holly who was sitting at the bar. She saw the surprised looked on Holly's face. "Can you make that two?" She said to Seth, the bartender. He nodded.

"Hey I didn't know you'd be here. Well I didn't know you're back. I guess that's more accurate." Holly smiled. Gail had missed that smile. She missed Holly. It felt weird talking to Holly again. She didn't think Holly would ever spoke to her again.

"It's so good to see you. I just got back yesterday." Holly smiled at that. "I'm waiting for the others to come. Andy thought we should hang out after shift." Gail said without being asked. She took a seat next to Holly. It had been a long time since they last had a conversation. Mostly it was because of her fault. Holly didn't look like she was mad. She saw the thrilled on Holly's face even just for a second after her hello.

_Constance was right_, Gail thought. She hoped it wasn't too late. "What about you?" She had to ask when she saw Holly was just sitting there, didn't bother to make a conversation.

Holly looked around the bar then back at Gail. "Just chilling and having a drink. I need some booze in my system with all the workload I have waiting in the morgue. The files are piling up. Tomorrow will be a busy day."

Gail saw the opportunity and she took it. "What if I get this and you can get the next round?" Gail said as she reached at her back pocket for some money.

"Oh actually I'm meeting someone." Holly said as her smile faded from her face.

"I'm sorry." Gail said quickly and reached for her drink the bartender just placed in front of her. _She's meeting someone? What does that mean?  
_

"Don't be sorry." Holly said as she watched Gail sipping on her drink. She sighed. She didn't think she would see Gail again let alone having a conversation with her after all the silent treatment Gail gave her. Gail had been avoiding her. When she went undercover for months it was the last straw. She should have known. The Black Penny was where most of the police officers hung out. Gail and her friends wouldn't be any different.

"How was your undercover operation?" Holly asked.

"Oh it was successful. We thought it would take months because we had some complications but thank God we sorted it out in two months. If I was offered another undercover job I'd think twice. That's pretty good job for a rookie. I'm still on my probationary period so that will look good on my report card."

"Good for you." Holly said in reply to her long stories about her operation. Holly didn't sound thrilled. Maybe she was mad.

"So is it someone's someone or just someone?" Gail mumbled. It wasn't right for her to ask after what she did. She was afraid to hear the answer but Holly spared her the heartbreak. She didn't confirm nor denied it. Their attention went to the front door where a brunette just walked in.

Holly turned to Gail and smiled. "That's the one I've been waiting for. Thanks for the drink." Holly raised her glass and made a beeline across the bar to hug the woman who looked disgustingly happy. It was a long embrace, maybe two minutes long. Gail counted.

"You took your time to figure things out or just to calm things down and just wait but you didn't realize how long it had been. The next thing you know she's with someone else. Your girl isn't your girl anymore and you were left to wonder if only you didn't ignore her that long." Seth said as he polished the glass in his hand while joining Gail watching Holly with her lady friend at the table by the window.

Gail shot him a look. The glass didn't need polishing. "I'm speaking from experience. Been there, done that. If tonight didn't work out for them maybe just maybe you'll have your second chance. I learnt my lesson." He stopped what he was doing and reached for Gail's empty glass. "Here's another round. It's on me." Seth placed the now full glass in front of Gail.

"I never pegged you as the kind who likes to share your love stories. Did you get your girl back?" Gail said as she took one last look at Holly then turned her back on them.

Seth chuckled. "I did. I married her and have two kids with her and I couldn't be happier." He gestured at a new customer to wait. "They say third time's lucky but you never know if that third chance will come around. So make the best of your second chance, if you get one that is." He looked at Gail who sat there quietly then went to attend to his customers.

"Self-sabotage is really a Peck thing." Gail reached for her phone and saw no calls or text messages. She glanced over at her watch and wondering where the hell her friends were. She started to regret agreeing to come to the Penny tonight. She sat there and tried hard not to look at the now laughing Holly sitting disgustingly close to her lady friend. It wasn't Holly but the woman sat closely to Holly. It was clear that the woman was hitting on Holly. _Jeez Gail! Stop psycho-analyzing them_.

She dialed Dov's number. "Where the hell are you guys?" Gail wasn't in the mood anymore. Even Andy hadn't showed up. "If you're not here in ten, I'm out of here!" Gail would rather be somewhere else than at the Penny.

She couldn't help to look at Holly. She hadn't talked to Holly since the wedding. All her calls left unanswered and she didn't even reply Holly's text messages. _Is it possible that Holly is seeing someone else?_ Gail thought. Holly didn't answer her question. Why didn't Holly answer her? Could it be because Holly wasn't serious? Did they break up?

The brunette was talking and Holly laughed to whatever she was saying. She hadn't stopped talking since they sat down, happily telling her stories. Wasn't that annoying? Even if it was Holly wouldn't say so. She was too polite to be rude.

Gail was about to leave when she saw Dov and the others came in through the front door. They were laughing and Dov waved at Gail. "Sorry we're late. Chris here had to have stomach problems."

"I have grown a beard." Gail said to Chris, annoyed because they made her wait and because Holly was sitting across from her with someone else, because it was so cold tonight and because Holly was sitting across from her with someone else. _Yeah I said that twice_. Suddenly everything was not right in the world.

"It's not me. It was Andy's fault. If she didn't take that extra work Detective Swarek asked her to do we'd be here sooner." Chris said defensively. Everyone took their seats around the table. "Andy wouldn't miss the chance to work with Detective Swarek." Chris added.

"Okay here's the deal. The winner drinks free." Dov said the rule as usual. He gestured to Seth for their usual drinks.

Gail sighed. _I'm so not in the mood for trivia game_. Her eyes kept looking at the couple by the window. Dov cleared his throat. "Earth to Gail?"

"What?" Gail asked.

"Is everything okay?" Dov turned around to look where Gail had been staring at.

"Let's play the game." Gail was avoiding as usual.

"Okay. Here's the first question. This Australian recording artist also appeared on General Hospital." Dov read the trivia on the card.

"Rick Springfield!" Chris guessed beating Andy to it.

"Isn't Rick Springfield the band from L.A?" Gail frowned at Chris.

"No you're thinking Buffalo Springfield." Dov corrected Gail.

"I love that song that they did with the Pet Shop Boys!" Traci said.

"Traci you're thinking Dusty Springfield." Dov corrected Traci.

"Really?" Andy asked. "Geez! Are they all related? That's confusing."

"Chris is right. It's Rick Springfield." They played a few more rounds of trivia game which felt like forever for Gail.

"I'm going to get another round. Anyone?" Chris asked as he stood up.

"Make mine a double." Gail said as she threw away the straw and drank it all up. She put her glass down with extra force while her eyes never left Holly and her lady friend.

Chris came back with her glass. They continued playing for another hour.

She had had enough. "I retired champion of the world. I'm going home with my crown."

"What? You're like mighty hundred points! Besides it's still early." Chris wanted Gail to stay.

"Oh come on Gail! That's not fair! I want your crown." Dov protested.

"Whatever." Gail didn't want to stay any longer. She didn't have a mood to play trivia anymore. Besides Holly and her lady friend had left like a century ago. "I'll see you guys tomorrow."

* * *

_At Peck's Residence  
_

Gail had been reading all the texts Holly sent her since she came back. What she saw at the Penny today was bugging her. If she wanted to be honest with herself she was jealous.

_Gail, can we talk please?_ That was the first text she got on Sunday and three phone calls.

_Gail please let me explain. I didn't mean it that way. Please answer your phone so I know you're okay._ The second text she received on the same day and another three phone calls.

_I know you're mad at me but you can't ignore me like this Gail_. The text she got on Monday.

_I really hope we can talk and sort this out_. That was the last text she received. It was a day before she went undercover. Holly waited for her to reply but she ran away instead. It could be that she was tired of waiting so she went out with someone else.

"But she said she wanted to talk. Let's just hope her date didn't work out and Seth was right." Gail hit the reply button on her phone.

_Hey I just want you to know that I'm happy to meet you today. I'm hoping we could go out for a drink when you're free. Let me know_. She hit the send button and waited.

_I'll call if she replied_. She waited until it was almost midnight but there wasn't any text came in. She sighed.

"Maybe things went well with them_," _Gail said as she remembered watching Holly and her lady friend left the bar laughing.

* * *

_At Holly's Apartment  
_

It was almost midnight when Holly had finished shower. She dried her hair with a towel and went down to the kitchen to get a glass of water before going to bed. She smiled when she saw the roses on her kitchen counter her friend had given to her on their way home. "That's a nice touch."

She took an empty vase from her cupboard and filled it with third quarter full with water. She trimmed off bottom of greens and put it the vase. She picked the tallest and tightest closed rose for her first placement and went to pick another five roses. She snipped all of them the same length and put them in. She filled the rest of the roses between the five roses. After satisfied with her arrangement she looked around and decided to put it on table in the living room. With a glass of water in hand she went back to her bedroom.

It was a long day. She took her phone out of her bag and was surprised to find that she had a text message from Gail.

Gail was back yesterday but didn't think to text or call her. When she showed up at the bar Gail acted like nothing happened. Holly could tell that Gail was jealous of them at the bar. Their eyes met a couple of times and each time Gail would turn away and pretended she wasn't affected by what she saw. She said nothing when Gail asked if her friend was someone special.

Holly put her phone down on the bed. "So she wants to start over or just a drink?" She asked herself because she wasn't sure if she was up to it. She had spent the last two months blaming herself for what happened and trying to fix things while Gail just ran away.

_Am I over her?_ She had no answer for that. Despite what happened she was happy to see Gail again.

"Gail, you should have at least left me a message." Holly said softly as she turned to her side and closed her eyes. "Maybe it wouldn't hurt so much."


	15. Chapter 15

Apology for the delay. I had a catastrophic hard disk failure and I didn't back up. Anyway I hope this chapter is enjoyable to read :)

Disclaimer: I love Gail Peck and Holly Stewart. I do not own Rookie Blue or any of its amazing characters.

Chapter 15 

"Can I ask you something?" Andy asked nervously at Gail as she followed her to her desk. She had been getting dirty looks from her fellow officers since a few weeks ago. She just had to be sure if it was because of what she thought it was. When she saw Gail walked in she couldn't wait any longer.

"Why are you so twitchy?" Gail asked. She sipped her hot coffee. "I bought two?" She muttered as she looked at two cups of coffee in her hands. She put the one in her left hand on her desk. The coffee shop she had been going for her morning coffees for the past few months gave her usual two cups and she didn't think about it when she paid._ Holly probably gets her own coffee by now_.

"No I'm not." Andy crossed her arms defensively.

"Tell that to your face." Gail said casually and sat down. "Coffee." She pointed at the coffee on the desk to Andy. Why threw away a good cup of coffee?

"For me?" Andy pointed to her chest as she looked surprised. "Thanks. That's very nice of you." Gail watched Andy drank it. "This is quite good."

_Well it's for someone else not you_. "I'm glad you approved. It's not free by the way. You have to return favour. Buy me one tomorrow."

"Sure." Andy licked her lips. "How do you like your coffee? Same with this one?" Andy asked. The one in her hand was black.

"I'm not picky when it comes to coffee." Holly loved her coffee black.

"Okay sure. What about tea? How do you take your tea?"

"I take cream with my tea." Gail answered.

"Oh you put cream in your tea too? Some people prefer milk over cream but some take their coffee black." Andy stopped when she saw Gail held up her hand and frowned.

Gail rolled her eyes. "We can talk about coffee and tea some other time Andy. I'm more interested to know what you're going to ask me."

"Peck! McNally! Briefing in five minutes." Officer Swarek reminded them as he walked passed them to his office. They both turned to look at the detective as he smiled at Andy. Andy cleared her throat when she realized Gail was staring at her. They both got up.

"Well there's a thing. I can tell you but you have to keep it a secret." Andy said quickly before she lost her nerves. They both stopped at the door. "Well at least until I'm sure I'm okay if people find out." She added.

Gail leaned against the door. "Do you have an estranged husband that you forget to tell us? Are you still married to a guy and now you feel guilty because you're having an affair? How big is your secret?"

Andy crossed her arms and looked over her shoulder. "No it's nothing like that. It's a big one."

"Great! I love big secrets! Tell me." They saw Dov walked towards them with a notebook in his hand and his usual sweet smile.

"Why are you guys standing here? You're blocking the way." Dov said as he waited for them to make way so he could enter. "Am I missing something?" He squinted. "Andy?"

"Good morning to you too. Yes you're missing a big news Dov. Please go along, take your seat. You'll know whatever it is sooner or later." Gail said quickly saving Andy from having to come up with an excuse. She moved and Dov looked at them both then went inside to take his seat.

"Gail!" Andy frowned at her. "Now he'll get even more curious."

"I'm assuming I'll be the first to know?" Gail ignored her friend as she glanced over at Dov who looked at them suspiciously. She smirked. It must be hard for him to feel left out. He always wanted to know everything.

Andy nodded. "Yeah. I'm just not sure." She stopped when the other officers walked passed them. "About something. Let's get a seat." They both went inside. Andy chose a seat at the back and farther from where Dov was sitting. "Whether this is the right thing to do."

Gail sighed. "It's too early to play a guessing game and I don't have all day McNally."

Andy hesitated.

"Sometime before I go gray Officer McNally." Gail said, slouching in her seat.

"Okay here goes. I have a thing with Sam." Andy spilled the bean. She had to whisper because the room was too quiet for her liking. People might hear and news like this one travel fast. Everybody loved rumors, cops or no cops.

"You mean Detective Swarek? Congratulations." Gail said. "You have found love. Let's celebrate." She didn't mean to be sarcastic but it came out sounded like that. Andy shot her a look. "Yeah okay. So what's the problem?"

"He's not my training officer but it's against my rule. I told myself not to date any senior officers until I finish my probation."

"You, miss perfect Andy never-hurt-a-fly McNally are breaking a rule. Even if it's your own rule I'd say that's a big deal." Gail laughed making Dov even more curious.

"Gail I'm serious." She chose to talk to Gail because she thought Gail wouldn't judge her, not that the others would but Traci had been slightly busy with her own business lately. She kept getting phone calls and then gone while Dov past assessment about Gail's family influence in the police force had her think twice about telling him first. Chris 'by the book' Diaz, would always be the last person to know anything.

Gail sighed. "Oh the devil with your rules Andy. I know you're serious but are you going to break up with him just because it's against your own rule? You make the rule so change it. Problem solved." She patted Andy's back. "Besides it isn't exactly a secret Andy. We know." She whispered.

"We? What do you mean we? Is it that obvious?"

"Well as you know I just came back from two months undercover operation so I don't know how obvious it was during that lengthy period but I think if only you could see how you two were looking at each other just now yeah I'd say it's pretty obvious. If we looked like we didn't know believe me we just play dumb." She had a feeling Andy knew but needed to hear it from someone else.

"I thought we had been pretty careful. I mean he's a detective. People will start thinking that he would favour me when we're on a case but you know it's not true. He doesn't favour anybody." Andy was babbling. Staff Sergeant Best walked in.

"I hope everybody has a good morning so far. As usual your assignment is on the whiteboard right there. There's nothing much to say, just the usual. Do what we always do which is to serve and protect." Staff Sergeant Best looked around the room and smiled upon seeing his goddaughter. "Before I let you all go, I have an announcement to make." He gestured at the door. Everybody turned around to see a female police officer walked in to stand next to him. She was petite and looked sweet in her uniform.

Gail's eyes glued to the female officer who was standing next to the Sergeant. "What the hell!" She muttered under her breath.

"Yeah I know right? What the hell? I don't want to break my own rule but here I am still want for our relationship to work. He doesn't mind if we keep it a secret but I feel sneaky. It feels like I'm doing something wrong. What the hell right? I can make this one an exception." Andy whispered. "I got a feeling he's the one. You know what I mean?" Andy went on as she thought Gail was talking to her.

"What the hell!" Gail said the second time. Slower this time but Andy still could hear her.

"Gail?" Andy turned to look at Gail. "What?" She followed Gail's eyes to the female officer. She realized Gail wasn't talking to her. God knew since when she hadn't been paying attention to what she just said.

"As we all know Officer Cruz has been transferred to Timmins. She's a good cop and I wish her all the best in Timmins. So we have a new family member with us today. I want to introduce all of you to our new rookie Officer Chloe Price." He looked proudly to his goddaughter next to him. "She was previously with 27 Division."

"We're one big happy family! Welcome to 15!" Officer Shaw shouted from the back followed by laughter and hands clapping. The new rookie smiled and nodded.

"Officer Shaw will be partnered with Officer Price for today and I believe there's a lot she can learn from him. One more thing, if you haven't been to the range I suggest that you all get out there and book it early. Those slots fill up pretty fast. All right that's it. Be safe out there."

"My lucky day! I love training new rookies!" Officer Shaw gave a thumb up at the Sergeant. "Come on Price! Let's roll." He shouted for the new rookie to follow him. Officer Price shook hand with the Sergeant then followed Officer Shaw to start her first day.

"What the hell." Gail couldn't believe what she saw. She shook her head in disbelief. That brunette. That was the same woman she saw with Holly last night at the Penny. That was the same woman Holly had left the bar with while laughed happily last night. That was the same woman her girlfriend had been going out with for only God knew how long. _What a small world. Can't you pick someone from other division Holly_?

"What is it?" Andy asked confused. Gail looked like she knew the new rookie by the way she stared at her. "You know her?" Her eyes followed the new rookie until she was out of sight.

"No I don't know her and I don't want to know." _Today is going to be a great day_. "Everything is great." Andy didn't know what had got into Gail so she left her to her own thoughts. She had her own problem to think about.

"We better get going." Andy stood up and went to check out who was her partner for today. Gail just wanted to get out of the room as fast as she could.

* * *

"Hey wait up!" Chris called for Gail. They were assigned to patrol together for the day. "Gail!"

Gail turned and looked pissed. "What?!" She sounded bitter.

Chris was surprised at the tone. "Whoah. I'm innocent. Don't get mad at me." He held his hands up in the air. "It's still early morning and you're pissed off. You get up on the wrong side of the bed? Did something happen?" He said as he opened the trunk of his car and shoved his bag inside.

"I'm always like this no matter what time of day it is and you know it. Don't act so surprised." Gail threw her bag in the trunk and went to the side of the car. "Just so you know you're hardly innocent." She opened the door and got into the car.

Chris shook his head as he got into the car. "Somebody definitely pissed you off." He said as he started the car. Gail ignored him. "This is going to be a long day." He muttered as he drove off.

_Chloe Price. So that's her name. How did Holly know her and how long have they known each other? Last night couldn't be their first date because they look so cosy and the way Chloe sometimes touches Holly's shoulder look like they have been seeing each other for quite a while. Maybe when I was undercover?_ Gail was quick to lose herself in her own thoughts. _I'm not surprised she's dating another police officer. She loves my uniform._ Gail remembered what Holly said about her uniform. _Yes I get it if she wants to see someone else but why someone from my division? Is she trying to make me jealous or something? If that is what she's trying to do then I admit she wins because I am jealous. But she didn't reply my text message last night. _Gail had checked her phone this morning hoping to see a text message from Holly but was left disappointed. _Perhaps it wasn't her intention to make you jealous Gail_. _The fact that she's seeing someone else only means that she's over you_. She closed her eyes at that thought.

Chris looked at Gail when he heard a sigh. "Hey are you alright?" He knew Gail hadn't been listening to him or even paying attention to her job. "You're acting weird."

"Will you stop asking? You're annoying the crap out of me." Gail said without looking at him. She wasn't in the mood.

Chris didn't take offence instead he laughed. "Nobody ever said that about me. I'm always cute, handsome, kind, you name it but never annoying." He grinned when he noticed Gail's stare. She looked ticked. "And if you haven't heard about this, I'm the new poster boy of the 15 Division." He giggled much to Gail's annoyance. He wasn't keen to be the face of the police recruit but nobody was volunteering either. "They decided last month when we were undercover." He had learned not to take Gail's sarcasm or snarky comments too seriously. Living with her for months made him Gail-sarcasm-proof.

"Well congratulations poster boy. Yes I do think you're cute, handsome, kind, tough and all kind of other manly stuff and above all annoying." Gail said, stressed at the word annoying.

He shook his head. "Who ruffle your feathers Gail?" Gail was usually laid-back. She was a little bit cold and unfriendly most of the times but that was it. He was sure there was something bugging her.

A voice over the radio interrupted them. "We have a call about a sleeper at Preston Park. May need some help."

"This is 1519." Chris answered. "We're the nearest. We take it."

"Copy that 1519."

* * *

Gail shut her door with extra force. She was bothered by the appearance of the new rookie. _So much for having a good morning Sergeant Best_. She planned to go to the range after work to let off some steam.

"Do you see anything?" Chris asked while looking at the surrounding apartment buildings. He didn't see anything unusual.

"Over there. That must be our guy." Gail pointed to someone sitting under a tree. "Taking a nap under a tree at this time of the year is not really a good outdoor activity."

"That's an advice from someone who hates outdoor activities." He smirked. "It's a lovely weather. I love October. You just need a little extra clothing." They approached the man cautiously.

"Sir, can we talk to you for a second?" Chris asked when they got closer but kept some distance between them. "Sir, can you hear me?" He asked again when the man didn't answer him. "How long do you think he's been sleeping here?"

"He's not moving." Gail said as she leaned forward to take a good look at his face. "Hey buddy wake up. It's getting cold out here. You better leave and get someplace warmer." Gail was about to touch his shoulder to wake him up but quickly took her hand back. "Oh my God! Seriously?!" She looked at Chris, annoyed. "Today couldn't get any worse." She muttered, hands on her hips.

"What?" Chris took a closer look then laughed. "Somebody is trying to be funny. It's just a pile of clothes." Chris squatted and began to go over the clothes to make sure there was nothing hidden under it. He looked up and shrugged. "Just clothes."

"Today is not the day to be funny in my book." She shook her head. "Who the hell did this anyway? Don't they have better things to do?"

"But you've got to give credit to whoever did this. It looks real." He stood up and crossed his arm. "It's quite a talent to do something like this, it's pretty lifelike."

"Stop admiring it." Gail reached for her radio. "Dispatch. This is 1519. Disregard the sleeper at the park. It's just a pile of clothes."

"Copy that 1519."

"That's a lame prank and this is the month of October not April." Gail said as they walked back to their car. She froze when she heard a gun shot. Her hand was immediately on her gun. She looked around trying to figure out where the sound came from. It couldn't be fire works. "Did you hear that? Was it a gun shot?" She asked even though she was certain it was a gun shot.

"Yeah I'm pretty sure it was a gun shot." Chris answered from behind her. "Gail?"

Gail turned around and was stunned by the blood on Chris's hand. "My left leg." Chris said as he sat down. The wound on his leg was oozing blood. It happened so fast only after a few seconds he felt the pain. Gail helped him to stand up. A third shot was fired and hit him. The impact of the bullet threw him back to the ground. He groaned in pain. Passers-by were shouting and running to avoid getting hit by stray bullets.

"Come on! We have to take cover!" Gail shouted as she urged Chris to stand up. "Over there!" He was too heavy for her to drag him all the way to the monument in the middle of the park. She put his shoulder around her and he was limping as fast as he could. Another shot was fired. She couldn't tell where it was coming from. Chris leaned against it and tried to slow the bleeding by putting more pressure on his wound.

Gail reached for her radio. "1519. Officer down! Chris has been shot! I repeat Diaz has been shot!" A few more shots were fired. "He's still shooting at us." Gail shouted to her radio. She tried to look but the shots kept on coming.

"Back up is on their way. Can you see the shooter?"

"Negative. I don't see the shooter but I think he's from the roof." Gail tried to look. They were surrounded by apartment blocks. He could be anywhere. "I think maybe southern east."

"Gail!" Chris pulled her back down. He looked pale. "We don't know exactly where he is! Wait for back up!"

"Back up is on their way." Dispatch on the radio repeated. "They're four minutes away."

"Shit!" Gun in hand, Gail cursed. She could hear sirens blared but four minutes felt like a long time. Chris would be okay but the longer they waited the shooter might take the chance to run. Chris looked at her.

"Gail, no!" He said like he could tell what Gail was thinking. "You can't go alone!" He grabbed her arm. "Wait for back up!"

"The shooting has stopped. He's getting away! We might lose him!" Gail tried to reason with him. She turned to look at the building apartment where she thought the shooter was.

Their back up arrived in the form of Oliver Shaw and his partner. "Peck! Diaz!" They saw Officer Shaw came with a bag of meds. He squatted next to Chris and took bandages out of his bag while Officer Price was standing next to her, weapon drawn. "Are you hurt?" He asked to make sure Gail was okay. She shook her head. "Ambulance is on their way. Andrews and the others are going straight to the roof. Did you see the shooter?" He asked while pushing Chris's hand away so he could tend to his wound.

"No." Gail said as she looked over to see a few more cars stopped in front of the apartment building. She was certain they were not going to find the shooter.

* * *

"How's Chris?" Dov grabbed her as soon as Gail walked in the front door. Traci and Andy were next to him. The news of the shooting had spread to the entire station.

"He took two bullets in his leg. He lost some blood but the doctor said it's not a life threatening injuries. He was lucky he had his vest on or he would have a bullet hole in his stomach." Gail went to the hospital with Chris but decided to return to the station when the doctor assured her he was going to be okay.

"Gail!" Gail turned around to see Steve worried face. She hadn't seen her brother for a while. "Are you okay? I had a raid. I came as soon as I heard." She sat on her chair while the others surrounded her. "Mom tells me to check up on you." He smiled, squeezing her shoulder.

"Yeah I'm okay." She had started to feel uncomfortable with all the attention and was about to use getting coffee as an excuse to leave when she saw Chloe.

"Hey." Chloe said as she took a seat next to Gail. "I'm glad you guys are okay." Her smile looked sincere.

"Thank you for your concern." Gail tried not to sound bitchy. She looked at Chloe and wondered if Holly ever mentioned her to Chloe.

"Come on. I just saw Sergeant Best entered the briefing room." Andy said as she and the others walked hastily to the briefing room while Gail trailing behind them.

Sergeant Best looked at everyone in the room. "The word from the hospital says Diaz is going to be okay. Unfortunately the shooter was gone when we got there. Detective Swarek and our crime scene techs are at the scene trying to find anything that could lead us to the shooter. In the meantime we will do our job as usual but I want you all to be careful. Peck!" He gestured for Gail to wait while the other officers walked out.

"Did you get yourself checked out?" Sergeant Best spoke when he stood in front of her. He had to make sure she was okay to resume duty. Superintendent Peck had called him asking about the shooting.

Gail nodded. "Yes sir I did at the hospital. They found a bullet in my vest but I'm okay." She would feel sore tomorrow morning but she hoped to be back on the street immediately.

"If you want to stay at the station." He shoved his hands in his pocket. Gail might be physically fine but he wasn't sure if she was mentally fit to go back to the street. She was one of the best rookies but still a rookie.

"No sir. I'm good. I want to go out." Sergeant Best nodded. "Thank you sir."

Gail walked out of the briefing room. She was glad he didn't ask her to do desk job. Her steps slowed when she saw Holly on the hallway. The doctor didn't notice her because she was facing on the other side. "Hey?" She said to let the doctor knew of her presence. "What are you doing here?"

Holly turned and Gail could tell she was relieved to see her. "I'm dropping off my report. It's a murder case couple of weeks ago." Holly held up the report in her hand.

"Isn't the courier usually bring that stuff over?" Gail raised her eyebrow. She didn't quite believe the doctor because she never seen her come down here delivering documents. Didn't the pathologist have an assistant or something?

"Yeah he was sick." Holly pushed her glasses up. "Or something." She could tell Gail didn't buy it by the way she looked at her. "Come here." She surprised Gail by grabbing her hand. Gail obediently followed her into one of the interrogation rooms. Gail was baffled by the sudden change of her demeanour.

"Is it true?" Holly asked. "I heard there's some freak out there shooting at you guys." She didn't usually pay any attention to rumours but this one she couldn't just let go.

"How did you know?" Gail asked. She didn't know people at the morgue spread rumours.

"The courier. He was down there at the morgue delivering some documents. He told me he heard something about two officers getting shot at this morning. He said it was a blonde chick and her partner."

"A blonde chick? Really?" Gail crossed her arms.

Holly shrugged. It wasn't her words. When the courier mentioned a blonde she was worried sick. Gail might not be the only blonde at the station but she was the only one she knew.

"I thought you said the courier was sick." Gail detected inconsistency in Holly's story. _This woman cannot lie_.

"Well he's not sick." Holly swallowed. She needed an excuse to come to the station. "So?" She demanded to know.

"You know I can't tell you." Gail said but gave up when she saw Holly's puppy dog eyes staring at her. "There was an officer who was shot. He's in the hospital and a few other officers took fire." Gail explained as much as she could tell. "But he's going to be okay."

"You mean you. Someone shot at you?" Holly asked. Gail's silence confirmed her suspicion that she was the blonde chick.

Gail looked at the woman in front of her. _Is she worried about me?_ Holly looked hesitated of what to do when Gail was just shaking her head with confused looked on her face.

"And you're going to go back out there?" Holly asked even though she knew what the answer would be.

Gail nodded. "Yes Holly. I'm a police officer. Just because some freak shooting at me doesn't mean I stop doing my job."

"But that doesn't mean you have to go out there and put yourself in danger!" Holly couldn't understand it.

"Yes kind of does." Gail was confused as to why Holly was down here talking to her. If she wanted to check on her she could have called.

Holly took a deep breath. "Okay fine. Listen I know things have been a little bit complicated between us." Complicated wasn't exactly the right word to describe their relationship status and this conversation was a little bit awkward. "I'm so sorry I didn't reply your message last night. I should have. I wanted to. I thought I could just forget about you but I couldn't. You have no idea how worried I was when I heard about the shooting." The courier guy wasn't even finished talking when she grabbed the file on her table on her way out to find Gail.

Gail felt butterflies in her stomach. _You have a second chance Gail!_ She had a feeling this could change everything for them. She couldn't help but stared at Holly's lips as she kept on talking about whatever she was talking about. Gail had stopped listening. She lost in her own thoughts convincing herself that she had been given a second chance. _She still loves you!_

"I won't be able to concentrate on my work so I thought I should come down here to make sure you're okay or something?" Holly looked out of sorts trying to explain why she was there. Gail smiled because she knew why.

"And I'm so glad you're okay. I mean I just wanted to make sure you're okay?" Holly was surprised when Gail pulled her closer and leaned forward searching for her lips. She closed her eyes when she felt Gail's body just inches away from hers. She had missed the feeling getting this close to Gail and her kisses.

"You're repeating yourself doctor. You're babbling. I just want you to stop talking." Gail said when their lips parted. She cupped Holly's face in her hands. Everything that happened in the past didn't matter to her right now. All she cared about was that Holly was here because she still cared for her. She wouldn't be here if she wasn't. She could see there was still love in the doctor's eyes for her. That was all that matters. They could work things out. Life was too short. She could have died this morning but thankfully she was still here. She wanted another chance. She wanted to make this right.

Holly smiled when their eyes met. At that moment she knew they had an understanding that they both wanted the same thing. "I won't say another word." She tilted her head as Gail found her lips again. They shared a kiss they both longing to have for a long time. Their reunion was interrupted by Gail's ringing phone. Gail pressed her lips to Holly's determine to ignore her phone until it stopped but she had to answer it when it rang the third time.

"I'm in the middle of life or death situation." Gail answered as she grinned at Holly who was just shaking her head. With the shooting and all people might think she needed a moment to regain her confidence or something. "Thanks. I'll be there when I'm done." Gail said and quickly shoved her phone back in her pocket. "I'm glad you came."

"I'm glad I came." Holly knew Gail had to go. They were locked in a loving embrace. Holly didn't want to let go. Her longing for Gail was almost unbearable now that she was holding her. She pulled back from Gail with heavy heart. "That was long overdue."

Gail nodded in agreement. "Wait. What about your 'seeing someone'?" Gail asked as she remembered Holly's date last night.

Holly smiled to assure Gail there was nothing she needed to worry about. "It was a stupid set up. It wasn't exactly a date. We're friends and we see each other occasionally. I don't know why I didn't tell you yesterday. I thought maybe you were just being nice when you asked to go out and have a drink with you." She shook her head. She knew she was wrong. "She knew I was in a relationship before. She told me I wasn't over my ex and she thought I wasn't ready. She also said she didn't mind waiting."

"Your ex?" Gail cut Holly's words. "As far as I know we were never broke up. More like giving ourselves time to think things over." At least that was what she thought when she was undercover. It didn't cross her mind that Holly would think that she wanted to break up. Gail had wanted to tell that to Holly yesterday. "Does Chloe know it wasn't a date?" The way Chloe flirted with Holly last night suggested that she thought it was a date. Too bad for Chloe because she would spend her whole life waiting.

Holly shrugged her shoulders. She didn't know what last night meant to Chloe but the woman herself said she wasn't ready. "Wait. You knew Chloe?" Holly asked surprised. She never mentioned Chloe's name to Gail.

Gail nodded. "Kind of and you have some explaining to do. I have to get going. If you have to deliver reports whenever the courier gets sick I don't mind if he gets sick everyday." Holly laughed softly. If only she could tell Gail to not go back to the street. What if it happened again?

"I'll be fine." Gail assured Holly. "I'll be extra careful."

"Okay I'll see you later then." Holly was ready to leave but turned when she heard Gail cleared her throat. Gail pointed to the forgotten file report on the desk. She bit her lower lip. "It's not really a report. Just some tests paper." Gail smirked. Holly took the file and walked to the door. She turned and said "Be careful." She smiled and then left.

Chloe was walking down the hallway when she saw Holly walked out of the room. Her face lit up and she was about to call the pathologist when Gail walked out of the same room a moment after. Gail stiffened when she saw Chloe staring at her.

"Gail, what is she?" Chloe pointed to Holly who turned at a corner and out of sight. She didn't get to finish her words when Gail responded quickly.

"The courier was sick Chloe. If you really must know." Gail didn't wait another second. She stormed off to find Traci to start her second shift.

"What?" Chloe baffled as she watched Gail walked away. _Holly? What is she doing here?_ Chloe thought as she turned to look at the hallway where she saw Holly just a moment ago. "What were they doing in that room anyway?"

* * *

Gail leaned back on her chair. Today was a crazy day. It started with her knowing Holly was seeing Chloe the new rookie at 15. Then Chris got shot. If the shooting didn't happen Holly probably wouldn't come looking for her and she wouldn't know Holly still loved her. As crazy as it sounded she was glad it happened. She smiled at the thought of their interrogation room encounter this afternoon. She took her phone out of her pocket and stared at it.

She selected the first name in her speed dial list. "Hey it's me." Gail said as soon as the line was connected.

"_Gail? Is everything alright?"_ She heard Holly's worried voice on the other line.

"Everything is okay. I'm fine. We're going to the hospital to check on Chris." Gail said with tired voice. "I really want to see you." Holly had been her place for comfort ever since they hooked up. She had missed going down at the morgue reading her scientific journals or just sitting on Holly's couch in her office watching her work.

"_You want me to come pick you up?"_ She heard Holly asked.

Gail glanced at her watch. Holly couldn't be at her office this late. "It's been a long day. I'm just going to go home and get some rest later. Are you at home?"

"Yeah but I really don't mind if you want me to come over." Gail smiled. It felt good having the pathologist back in her life again. Today turned out to be a great day for her.

"It's fine." Gail covered her phone with her hand when she heard Andy yelled her name. "One minute!" She yelled back. "I've got to go. They're waiting."

"Okay. Call me if you need anything." Holly was quiet. "Let me know when you're free." She added after a long pause.

Gail knew what she meant. They needed to sit down and had an honest talk about some issues. "Okay. I'll call. Good night." Gail ended the call.

"I'm coming!" She yelled back at Traci. "God! Can't they wait?"

* * *

"Hey guys!" Chris was happy to see them. Dov, Gail, Traci and Andy came in.

"We miss your pretty face already Diaz. Oh yeah the others send their regards." Officer Shaw decided to join the rookies was the last one to enter. "How are you holding up?" He asked while the others looked on.

Chris had no idea who the other was but said thank you anyway. "I think I'm getting better." Chris explained what the doctor told him a few hours ago. "I might be discharged earlier than I thought. I don't want to sit here while you guys busy catching bad guys. I can't believe I'm saying this but I don't mind doing desk job." He couldn't wait to get out of the hospital.

"Oh so I guess you'll still be our poster boy? Thank God we don't need to find replacement for you because Sammy wanted to nominate me. Can you imagine that? I was cute when I was a rookie but even my kids would be surprised to see my face on a poster." They laughed. It was good to have Officer Shaw around. He was always chatty and trying to lighten up the mood. He sometimes had the best jokes.

Chris was embarrassed. He was proud wearing the uniform but he didn't want to be a poster boy. If they had asked him he would have said no. "Yeah I guess so."

Officer Shaw's phone rang. "Yes sweetheart. I'm still at the hospital." He nodded a few times. "You could check the shelves above the microwave. What are you making anyway darlin'? I'm pretty sure that my building has a no potion policy. Okay I'm coming home now. I'll see you in half an hour." He hung up. "I have to run now. Celery wants to cook something special for me tonight. She'd been calling me like a million times already. Have a good rest Diaz. See you guys tomorrow." He patted Chris's shoulder and left.

"Did we get him?" Finally he got to ask. "Was he shooting from the roof?"

"Yes. We found empty cartridges there but he was gone." Gail said. "The forensics didn't find any prints or anything we could use to trace him. Nobody saw him left either."

"I'm so glad you're okay." Dov sighed. "Too bad he got away."

"Yeah." Andy who had been quiet spoke. "I just hope we catch him before he strikes again."

"I don't think this is a random shooting." Traci chipped in.

"I hope you're wrong. We don't want a crazy person with a gun running loose shooting at people." They all agreed with what Gail's said.

"What about you?" Chris looked at Gail.

"I'm fine." Chris stared at her. She shrugged her shoulders.

"We'll come again tomorrow." Dov and the other were ready to leave.

"Gail?" Chris said. "Can I talk to you for a second?" Gail sat back on her chair while the others left.

"I wanted to catch him as bad as you, but you know it's dangerous to go alone without any back up." Chris said. He didn't want Gail to get hurt. If Officer Shaw didn't come at that time he was sure Gail would pursue the shooter alone.

Gail sighed. She knew Chris was right. If Chris didn't stop her she would have gone and made herself an easy target. "I know. I'm glad you're okay." She smiled. "FYI I don't hate outdoor activities."

"Then I'll tell Dov to arrange for us to go camping." He joked.

"Thank you for the offer but I'd prefer my comfy bed." Gail said as she stood up. "It's getting late. I should go."

"Gail?" Chris said waiting for Gail to look at him. "You pulled me out of a dangerous situation. It could get worse if you didn't. So you did good."

"I know!" Gail frowned at him. She knew he was trying to make her feel good despite they lost the shooter. It was also her job to protect her partner and get him out of harm's way.

"Okay. I'll see you tomorrow?" He saw Gail nodded. "Good night Gail." She waved on her way out.


	16. Chapter 16

Thanks Resinswhy! It slipped my mind. I'll make sure she knows. :) 

Disclaimer: I love Gail Peck and Holly Stewart. I do not own Rookie Blue or any of its amazing characters. 

CHAPTER 16 

"I'm a woman of my word." Andy said as she stopped next to Gail. 

"Good for you but why are you telling me this?" Gail asked without looking up from her phone. She had ten minutes before her shift started. "Perhaps you should tell that to Detective Swarek? He might be interested." 

"Oh he already knew that." Andy said cheerfully. "It's cream with sugar." 

"What?" Gail frowned and watched Andy putting the coffee cup on her desk. "I already got mine." She said and went back smiling at her phone. 

"Yesterday you told me to get one for you. It's cream with sugar." Andy tried to peek. "Who are you texting with?" She asked when Gail seemed too consumed with her phone. 

"Oh." Gail looked up and gave Andy a closed lip smile. She leaned back so Andy couldn't see. She sent one last text and shoved the phone into her pocket. "I forgot. Thanks. You are a woman of your word." She grabbed the coffee and rushed her way down to the morgue. 

"Gail! Wait. Where are you going?" Andy shouted but Gail was already gone. Hands on her hips she shook her head. 

"What's the rush?" Dov who just got in asked while putting his keys into the drawer. "Where is she going?" He darted a curious glance at Gail before she disappeared from view. 

Andy shrugged her shoulders. "No idea but she better not late." She glanced at her watch and walked back to her desk with her coffee in hand. 

It didn't take long for Gail to appear at Holly's door. "Knock knock. Coffee's here." Gail smiled when she saw the pathologist sitting behind her desk already busy with work. 

Holly looked up to that familiar voice. "That was fast." She took the coffee from Gail. She got a text from her just a minute ago. Gail leaned down and gave her a quick kiss. 

"It's cream with sugar." Gail said. "Gotta go. I'll see you later." She winked and left. 

"Be safe!" Holly said, loud enough for Gail to hear. She saw Gail waved and gone. 

* * *

"I can't believe nobody saw him fleeing the scene. What is he? A ghost? Nobody can be that good." Andy said while putting her bag in the trunk. "There's got to be something we can do." 

"Like what? We've already asked but nobody saw anything. Even the evidence is against us. Maybe Traci was right. He's not an amateur." Gail opened the door and got inside. The residence probably did see something but didn't speak up. 

"That sounds like trouble. So I hope not." She handed Gail a paper with address of the places they needed to go then turned on the ignition. 

Gail put on her seat belt and frowned at the paper. "What is this?" 

"It's our schedule for today?" Andy said raising her eyebrow. 

"I can hardly read this thing." Gail complained while shaking her head. "Look at this! How am I supposed to read this awful handwriting!?" She brought it up for Andy to see. "Tell me this is not your handwriting." 

"Nope. I'll take your complaint to Chloe. She wrote that." Andy glanced at the paper then shifted her attention back to the road. "The printer is acting up." 

"I don't know what's with lesbians and their ugly handwriting!" Holly was an exception_._ Her handwriting wasn't ugly or anything like that. It wasn't really Chloe's handwriting that was bothering Gail instead it was her close relationship with Holly that bothered her the most. She didn't have time to ask Holly about that. "And they're always hitting on me!" Gail frowned at the paper in her hand for the second time. 

"What? Did Chloe make a pass at you too"? Andy asked, surprised. 

"What? No!" Gail corrected Andy immediately. "I'd rather taser myself in the eyes than lock lips with that woman." She made a face when she had that image in her head. 

Andy laughed. "Yeah. I didn't know why I said that. Well she flirted with me yesterday. Just a little so." She shrugged her shoulders. "But one thing I know is that Chloe is pretty much into Doctor Stewart right now." 

Gail froze. "What do you mean?" Gail asked pretending to read the paper. 

"I don't know much about her story but Chloe told me that she's hanging out with a cool chick. I didn't know it was our forensic pathologist. Who would have thought." Andy said completely oblivious to the sudden change on Gail's face. "I think they've been hanging out for quite a while. Since before she got transferred here." She added. 

Gail was quiet. The paper with awful handwriting in her hand was long forgotten. She tried to process what she just heard. _And what's with Chloe telling someone she just knew for a day about her crush or someone she's hanging out with?_

"You're friends with Doctor Stewart right?" Andy broke the silence, remembering that Dov once told her about it. 

_We are more than friends dammit._ "When did she tell you this?" 

"Um yesterday after the news about the shooting broke. We were waiting for you to come back from the hospital. Why?" 

Gail shrugged her shoulders. "Nothing. Just curious." She was bothered but she needed to hear it from Holly first before she went all jealous girlfriend on her. History could repeat itself and she didn't want that to happen again. 

"So where are we going first?" Andy asked. 

"Queen's Village." Gail squinted. "Even Dov's handwriting is more readable." She murmured. "It's a troubled neighbourhood. They have four cases of robbery for the past two weeks, one shooting and some petty crimes." She read what was written on the paper. 

"That is one troubled neighbourhood! Oh I think I can't go to the hospital later today. Can you tell Dov?" Andy said. "I have a date with Sam." She smiled. 

Gail rolled her eyes. "Why don't you tell him yourself?" 

"We have a 911 call about domestic violence on 57th Street." They heard the dispatch over the radio. 

"That's not too far from here." Gail said. 

"Dispatch. This is 1519. We're in the neighbourhood. We take it." Andy responded. "Talk about a troubled neighbourhood." She added. 

"Copy that 1519." 

"I can do that but why don't you just text him? It saves me from coming up with an excuse why you can't go." Gail said. 

"Okay sure. Since everybody knows I'll just tell him I have a date." She sighed. 

"Thank you." Gail said while folding the paper in her hands and put it into her pocket. 

"I think this is it. 57th Street." She stopped in front of the building apartment but they both stayed in the car for a moment. 

"Do people still lives here? I wouldn't live here. It looks like an abandoned building to me." Gail glanced at Andy. 

"Gail, just because you wouldn't live here doesn't mean other people wouldn't." Andy said as she got out. "Come on. We need to follow up on the 911 call." She leaned against the door. 

"I'm just gonna confirm the address again." Gail stayed in the car and reached for her radio. "Dispatch please confirm the address. Is it 57th street?" She asked while Andy looked on. 

Before they got a reply they were surprised by a gun shots. It missed Andy but shattered her window. "Andy! Get in the car!" Gail shouted. Andy immediately ducked to take cover then threw herself into the car. She closed the door and put the car on reverse. 

"Officers under fire! I repeat officers under fire!" Gail shouted to the radio. She lowered her head while trying to see where the shot was fired. She saw nothing. "We're taking cover!" 

The car screeched to a halt and they both jumped out and were ready for any possibilities. "You hit?" She glanced over at Andy. 

"No. You?" She never left her eyes on the building. They both were ordered to wait for back up to arrive. 

* * *

"This is the second shooting in two days. From now on every 911 call I want two cars respond. No exception." Sergeant Best gave the order. The news about the shooting spread across the entire station as fast as the first incident. "We are still investigating if the first shooting has any connection with this one. So be careful." Everybody walked out of the prep room with concern look on their faces. One of them could be the next. 

"Thank God you guys were okay." Dov murmured next to Gail. "I don't want to see another one of my buddies in the hospital bed in the space of two days." 

"I have to go see Sam." Andy said and left. 

Gail shook her head. She couldn't believe this happened twice already. What ticked her the most was that for the second time the shooter got away. By the time back up arrived the shooting had stopped and he was gone. He sure knew how to escape unnoticed. 

"I'll ride with you. I just need to go to see Andrews for a minute." He said as he ran to the booking section. Gail nodded and went to her desk to check on her stuff. 

"Gail!" She heard the familiar voice. 

"Hey?" Gail was surprised to see Holly down there at the station. "You heard?" She asked as she darted nervous glances around the room. Everybody was busy with their own stuff. 

"Yeah news travel fast." Holly had asked Rodney to keep alert on what was happening at the station. He was reluctant but did it anyway. She couldn't help to come when she heard Gail was involved again. 

"Good so I don't have to explain because I don't have much time." Gail went back to packing her stuff into the bag but Holly stopped her. She grabbed Gail's hand. 

"I just want to make sure you're okay." Gail took her hand back and licked her lips. _Was she nervous? Holly wondered_. 

"Thanks but I'm okay. I have to go." Even after the shooting she still had to go out patrol. 

"Okay so this is how we're going to do this." Holly said softly as shoved her hands into her pocket. She saw Gail nodded. _Okay that's fine_. 

"Gail! We're probably should get going." Dov said as he walked passed them. Gail was surprised because she didn't see where he was coming from. _Shouldn't he be at the booking?_

"Hm mm. Holly I really need to go." She put the last thing on her bag and zipped it. 

"Be careful." Holly said as she watched Gail took her bag and followed Dov to the door. 

* * *

For the past ten minutes they were quiet. Dov glanced at Gail who looked bothered. 

"It's funny how sometimes relationship starts." Dov smiled as they cruised down the road. 

"Oh my God, we're not really having this conversation are we?" Gail rolled her eyes as soon as Dov started to preach. She had waited for him to open his mouth since they got in the car. She knew this was coming. 

"I mean at first you two don't like each other and then when time passes by and the longer you know that person you think hey this person isn't so bad. I like her. You know what I mean?" He said completely ignoring Gail. 

"No I don't know what you mean." Gail's hand was on her head. If she could jump out of the car and didn't kill herself in the process she would. 

"You hang around her a lot, spend some time together and you see her pretty much every day at work and sometimes during weekends. So now you're friends with her and everything is going great until you start to care about her." Dov smiled at Gail who put up a straight face. "What?" 

She stared at him but said nothing. 

"Oh my God Gail. You are my friend and I care about you. You just got shot at twice!" He said. "You say I can't worry about you?" 

"We're talking about us?" Gail asked, a little bit lost. 

"Of course I'm talking about us. Who do you think we're talking about?" He smirked. 

Gail almost believed him but that smirked gave him away. She knew he had her. "Okay please stop acting weird and where are you going with this? Don't you have enough bromance with Chris?" _Great intro Dov_._ Nicely played_. 

"Now that you ask I'm not going to deny that I saw what happened." Finally he admitted. He didn't want to jump straight to the subject because he wanted to see how Gail would respond. 

Gail shook her head. She knew Dov saw what happened. She was hoping Dov wouldn't bring it up but he did. It wouldn't be Dov if he wasn't. 

"Actually I've been thinking about you and Holly all the time ever since a few months ago. You know about you two being together." Dov said like it was the most natural thing to say. Gail slowly turned sideways to look at him. 

"Did you hear yourself?" Gail crossed her arms. 

He let out a nervous laugh. "That came out wrong." He could see Gail was staring at him from the corner of his eyes. "I didn't mean it that way." 

"You came out wrong." Gail shook her head. She had lost count of how many times she did that. 

"Actually I hadn't figured it out until now and I'm almost certain that I was right." 

"Figured out what?" Gail asked even though she knew what he was talking about. "Right about what?" Couldn't this conversation be any weirder? 

"That you and Holly are together." Gail glanced at him but didn't interrupt. "You do know that she came looking for you at the station after you went undercover?" He didn't wait for Gail to respond. "I thought it was about work but she said it was personal matter. Of course that's not the telltale because for all I know you two could be friends even though I doubted it at first. It takes a lot to be your friends. If you know what I mean." 

Gail punched his shoulder. "Really Dov? I'm starting to like you!" 

He grinned. "She looked really disappointed and kind of sad when I told her you were gone. So I suspected that something was going on between you and Holly although I didn't think it was a matter of heart. What I saw at the station today confirmed my suspicious." He pretended he didn't see it when Holly held Gail's hand even that happened only for a second before Gail took her hand back. He saw it. 

"Of all people at the station she asked you." _Nice one Holly_. "And since when did you start calling her by her first name?" 

"Well she was just standing there looking around for you. I didn't notice her though until she stopped me. It was fate doing if you asked me." He said. "She's your special friend or girlfriend to be accurate so she's my friend too. Friends don't call friends by their last name do they? At least not for me." He added. 

They were quiet until Gail spoke, surprising Dov. "We had our first big fight at the wedding. I shouldn't have left." She meant the operation, not leaving the wedding party. 

"What happened?" He knew which wedding Gail was talking about. 

"I met her best friends at the wedding. They weren't supposed to be there. You know all these doctors sometimes they can act like a jerk. We have mutual feelings though. I don't like them and they don't like me." Her blood boiled whenever she thought about them. 

"That's understandable. You make a terrible first impression." He said. It was like that for him when he first met Gail. She was that kind of person who you dislike in high school, at least for him. 

Gail punched his shoulder, harder this time. "Thank you for the vote of confidence. You have guts by the way." 

Dov laughed. "Look they just misunderstood. Once they get to know you they'll see that you're not as cold as you lead people to believe." This time he leaned farther to the left to avoid a punch he knew was coming. 

"I don't care what they say or think about me." Gail snorted. She didn't really, only what Holly thought of her matters. 

"Did they say bad things about you behind your back? What did they say?" 

"Her idiot friends think I'm not serious about Holly." That wasn't the only thing she heard that day. "And they told her to dump me." She almost spit at those words. 

Dov understood. "Your ambiguous sexuality might have something to do with it." His eyes never left the road. "I mean the fact that this is the first time you fall for a woman kind of makes people wonder. Maybe they think you're just experimenting." 

"I'm not experimenting. Why would I want to do that?" She shot him a look. "Whose side are you on?" 

"Your side. I'm not saying that you are but maybe that's what they think. But that's not necessarily what Holly thinks. Maybe that's why they think you're not serious with Holly." He didn't know what exactly they fought about but it probably had something to do with what Holly's friends had said. Holly probably was caught between defending her idiot friends and sticking up for Gail. Only God knew. 

"I gave this a lot of thought. This isn't just a phase." Gail said. She had thought about this before when she first felt something for Holly. She thought the feelings would go away after sometime but it didn't. 

"I can see that." He smiled. "Look it doesn't really matter what people say as long as you're happy. She makes you happy doesn't she?" He asked. 

"Yes she does. When I'm with her I feel like a different person. I mean I'm happier and I'm better maybe." Gail said surprising Dov with her openness. 

Dov smirked. "I bet you are. You're easier to talk to and you've been in a good mood this entire time you're with Holly. That kind of changes don't go unnoticed. We're all need to thank Holly for that for making our life easier." He laughed hard. 

Gail turned to look at Dov. "I may be all of that but I'm still the ice queen of the 15 Division. Remember that." 

"And she makes you soft! Here you are talking heart to heart with me." He added and gotten a punch on the shoulder for that. "Hey! I'm driving!" He tried to evade the punches. 

"I'm not soft! You goaded me into having this conversation in the first place!" 

Dov laughed. Gail was turning soft and he was happy to see that. Even if she wasn't at least she was happy. 

"Seriously that's all in the past. What's important is that you guys are back together right?" Dov said. "Everyone deserves to be happy, even you Gail." Dov said as he glanced over to Gail who didn't deny everything he just said. He had said what he wanted to say and he hoped it helped Gail a little. 

"Thank you relationship guru. That was very helpful." That was the end of their conversation. 

"You're welcome." He replied and never mentioned it again for the rest of their shift. 

* * *

"I'm sorry for being such a jerk." Holly had come to check on her out of worry for her but she blew her off. "Do you still have cheese puffs?" Gail asked. She was nervous and she craving some all of a sudden. 

"Yes I still have it. It's in the drawer." Holly gestured to her desk. She was surprised to see Gail but happy nonetheless. Gail had nothing to apologise for. She took off her latex glove and leaned against the wall. She watched as Gail went to get it. 

Gail couldn't help but noticed there was a piece of paper under it. "What is this?" She picked it up. "Can I read it?" She asked even though she was already reading it. 

"It's just something I wrote when you were away." Holly tried to get it back from Gail but she was too quick to react. She moved her hand back farther from Holly's reach. 

"I'm intrigued." Gail raised her eyebrow. 

Holly sighed and nodded. Gail had read part of it so what the hell. She wrote it on the day she found out Gail had left.

"You wrote this?" Gail asked after a while. "I thought you only wrote science stuff." 

Holly was embarrassed. "Yeah well. I had too much emotions inside my chest I had to let it out because I was going bonkers." 

"It's sad but beautiful." Gail looked at the poem again and her eyes locked at the last sentence. 

_Mine – will always shine until even I – whom deify it the most is long gone._

"You're not going anywhere!" She stared at Holly. "I want to be that diamond!" 

"You are Gail. From the start and I had never doubt it." She had forgotten about it. She didn't plan for Gail to read it. 

"I don't want to be a cat anymore Holly." Gail folded the paper and shoved it into her pocket. It was written for her so she wanted to keep it. "But I'm not so sure how to do this." Gail said and walked to sit on the couch. She let her breath out. Her eyes had been on the floor. She would rather look at Holly's beautiful face but she just couldn't let her see her uncertainty. "Dov has been giving me relationship advice. I think that's funny considering he hasn't really had a girlfriend. I thought he and Chris would make a great couple." She laughed. 

Holly came to sit next to Gail. "It's okay if you don't know how to do this." She brought Gail's chin up. "We're in this together. I'm not going to leave you. Trust me." Gail looked up but still had that uncertain look on her face. 

Holly chuckled. "Okay girlfriend, stand up." She abruptly stood up and held her hands out. She would try a different approach. "Get you butt up Gail Peck." She said again when Gail didn't move. 

"You call me your girlfriend. You never said it out loud." _And never did I_. Gail couldn't contain a smile. She loved the sound of that. She had a couple of ex-boyfriends but it didn't feel the same way. 

"Yes because you are my girlfriend Gail Peck. You are my amazing cop girlfriend. I can say that a million times if that doesn't sink in already." Holly rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. 

"I love how it sounds." Gail laughed and finally stood up. She took Holly's hand in hers. 

"I want you to take a breath and do as I say. Close your eyes. Now tell me what do you feel?" Holly asked. Gail looked at their hands and closed her eyes. 

She was silent. She felt a new sense of sensation now that she had come to terms to confront her fears. With Holly on her side she knew they were going to make it. She was going to make it. "Have you ever noticed how soft your hand is? It's soft. It's pretty soft." She caressed Holly's hand lovingly. 

Holly laughed. "Gail! You know that's not what I meant." 

Gail cracked opened one eye. "Oh I thought that what you meant. Sorry. I over imagined things and I kind of get a little carried away. I know what you meant Holly. I may look like Marion Hawthrone on the outside but I'm more like Shakespeare in Love on the inside. Just like you. I never thought you were into poetry." She didn't look sorry at all. "But I'm not kidding. It's soft." 

Holly raised her eyebrows. "I'm not into poetry and thank you for the compliment." 

"Okay girlfriend. Now will you enlighten me why we are holding hands in the middle of the room?" Gail asked, confused. 

"I love how that sounds." Holly tightened the grip on their hands. Gail squeezed her hands in return. "We're going to take a walk." 

"What do you mean a walk?" Gail frowned at Holly. "Did you inhale any dangerous chemicals today Holly? Did you bump your head this morning on your way to work?" Gail hadn't finished her words when Holly leaned in to kiss her. She closed her eyes at the closeness between them. Their hands still intertwined with each other. 

"I'm sorry. I just want you to stop talking. A walk is a walk. It means exactly as you hear it." Holly said when their lips parted. _Damn why do we need air to breath?_

"You're good at stealing kisses." Gail purred her lips. She felt good. "Now seriously tell me what are we going to do?" 

"Your kisses are too sweet. I wouldn't mind being called a thief." Holly laughed. "In fact, I'd love to be handcuffed by one Officer Gail Peck." Holly pulled Gail closer. "Everything is going to be okay. Come take a walk with me." 

Gail looked at Holly, wide eyes. "Golly! I thought you were kidding!" 

She glanced at Gail and grinned. "I've been very serious since the beginning of this ship and certainly am not kidding about it now." 

"Ship? Are we in the same conversation Holly?" Gail asked. Holly didn't say anything but had that usual lopsided smile on her face. 

Gail's phone rang and she answered it. "What's up?" She paused. "I can't. I have a thing." She shook her head. "No. Tell him I say hi?" Holly saw Gail's made a face. "Yeah I know she told me." She paused. "He's your boyfriend Dov. He needs you, not me. I've to go." She shook her head then ended the call. 

"Who was that?" Holly asked. 

"It's Dov. He's whining that Andy and I can't go with him to the hospital and Traci didn't pick up his call." She set her phone in vibrate so they wouldn't be interrupted again. "Let's walk, shall we?" 

They walked slowly out of Holly's office hand in hand. Holly's right hand was firmly in her lab coat while Gail didn't know what to do with her left hand. She let it loose by her side. Her nervousness was still there. 

"When I first came out, it wasn't a nice experience but it wasn't bad either." Holly suddenly spoke. Gail listened without saying a word. "This is another lab we have down here. That's my assistant Rodney. You probably have seen him around before." Holly said, as she pointed to the said room. "Rodney!" Holly shouted. The guy turned around but waived back hesitantly when Holly waved at him. "I just wanted to say hey."

Gail looked at Holly. _Are you freaking kidding me? Are we on a tour or something?_

"Uh hey Doctor Stewart." Rodney stood there didn't really know what was going on. Holly laughed and they walked passed the lab, leaving the confused Rodney even more confused. Gail saw Rodney tilted his head to follow them until they were out of his sight. 

"So I decided to tell my friends. Some of them said they didn't mind but eventually grew farther apart from me which I didn't mind. At least I knew who my friends were." She put her glasses over her head and glanced at Gail, smiling. "It was a long time ago." 

"How long have you known?" Gail asked, curious. 

"That's the morgue. I guess you already know that." Gail looked at the morgue where she had been a familiar face since the beginning of their ship as Holly put it. 

"Good afternoon Doctor Stewart." Someone walked out from the morgue greeted them. 

"Good afternoon." Holly said, not letting go of Gail's hand. Gail returned the lab technician's smile or whoever that was. 

"I've realised I was a lesbian since high school. I had a crush on one of my classmates. A thin girl with big curly hair." Holly chuckled. "But she didn't know because I never told anyone." 

Gail felt a little jealous. It was a thing of the past but still. "Why didn't you?" 

Holly shrugged. "I guess I didn't know what to do with those feelings back then. Just like how you feel right now. I didn't know how to handle it. I kept it a secret until I had someone I trusted enough to make me open up." They walked passed another room full of small bottles in there. "But everybody has their own story." She added. 

"Am I even allowed to be here Holly?" Gail asked, wondering when she saw the 'Authorise Personnel Only' sign at one of the doors. She had never been at this section of the morgue before and she was sure she wasn't an authorise personnel. 

Holly nodded. "Yes. Don't worry. You're safe with me." Gail shrugged. She was the pathologist after all. 

"What makes you wanted to tell the world?" 

"Well I didn't exactly tell the world, just people close to me. After that it wasn't a secret anymore. I thought I deserved to be happy and I wanted to be happy but in order to do that I had to be true with myself first." 

"What about your family?" Gail asked curios. She didn't know what her family would say if she came out. 

Holly shrugged her shoulders. "They supported me. Their love for me never changed. Lisa and Rachel were my friends from college. The first few who knew. They were my roommates. That's why I wanted you to get along with them." 

"I'm sorry things didn't go so well with them but I'm not sorry for walking out that day. I know they're your friends but they were jerks." 

Holly nodded. "Yeah I know. I'm sorry. I really am. We had a long talk after that fateful day. I didn't like the way they talked about you and I told them how important you were to me. They understood and they said they would be happy to start things all over again. But I was so sad and disappointed when you ignored all my calls and text messages." She bit her lower lip. "Then you were gone for two months. I thought we were over." 

Gail glanced at Holly. "I'm sorry. I'm still a brat. I had been thinking about you every day since then. I was sad and disappointed when I saw you with Chloe at the bar. I thought you moved on." She rolled her eyes. 

"I noticed." Holly smiled. "You look sexy when you're jealous. I was happy when I realised you still had feelings for me. I'm glad I went back looking for you." 

"Me too." Gail said. 

"Either way, regardless of how things between you guys turn out, I don't care. I want to be with you and they just have to suck it up and live with it." Holly said, looking in distant. "But of course it'd be great if you guys can get along." She was hopeful. 

Listening how important those two stupid doctors to Holly, Gail vowed to behave and at least try to be nice to them when they met again but maybe not so soon. She was still mad at them. 

"It's not about whether you deserve to be with me. It's because we deserve to be together. I want you to be part of my life. That's what matters." They stopped and looked at each other in the eye. 

"Holly, why didn't you come into my life sooner? If you did I wouldn't have wasted my life dating all those beards I called ex-boyfriends!" They laughed. 

"So you wouldn't mind holding hands with me out there? Where everyone will see?" Holly asked because she wanted to be sure. What happened today hurt her a little. 

Gail regretted not to have this talk with Holly sooner. If she did things wouldn't be so bad. She almost screwed up her relationship with Holly. Looking back now it was silly to feel scared as she was before. 

"No I wouldn't mind. In fact, I would want to hold your hands so the world can see that you're single but not available because you belong to me." 

"Possessive. I like." Holly laughed. 

"I'm not only possessive but I'm also a very jealous girlfriend but you already knew that. Oh especially Chloe. She should know you're taken." Gail suddenly remember the woman. 

"I'll talk to her." Holly said. 

"How did you know Chloe anyway?" Gail intrigued. 

Holly smiled. "Chloe is a friend of a friend. We've known each other since before I met you." She stopped. 

"That's interesting. Continue." Gail encouraged her. 

"Well Lisa and Rachel set us up for a date. We went out a few times but we didn't click. At least for me because she had feelings for me and thought we were in the same boat. I told her it wouldn't work out between us." Holly looked at her girlfriend. "She said she understood but she had one request. She wanted us to remain friends. I didn't have a problem with that. So we hang out sometimes with my other friends and sometimes just the two of us." 

Gail listened. She knew Chloe still had feelings for Holly and she just waited for her chances. She got one when they 'broke up' for two months. 

"Hey." Holly brought her back to reality. "There's only you in my heart." 

"I believe you but I'm not sure about her. She told Andy she's into you." Gail remember what Andy told her in the car. 

"She did?" Holly looked surprised. "I'll talk to her okay?" 

Gail shrugged her shoulders. "Do you still have places you want to show me?" She glanced around. 

"Nope. You're not allowed down here." Holly smiled as they turned back. "How did you know Chloe?" 

_I knew it! Gail thought_. "She didn't tell you she transferred here?" She frowned. "She came here the same day I was back from undercover. I was surprised to see her." 

"Apparently she didn't. I was wondering how she knew Andy when you mentioned that earlier." Holly was quiet, obviously thinking about Chloe.

"Hey it's okay now that I know." Gail smiled. If Holly said Chloe wasn't going to be a problem then she believed her. They walked back to Holly's office. 

"So here we are. Thank you for the tour." Gail felt so much lighter. She still had to find a way to break the news to her family but for now everything was going great. 

"My pleasure. Do you want to grab dinner? I'm almost done with work." Holly asked. 

"Sure. I'm starving!" 

"Okay give me a few minutes to arrange the files. Then we can go." Holly said and went to start organizing her files. 

Gail sat down at her usual spot and stretched out. She winced at the sting of the pain in her stomach. It probably bruised a little. 

"Are you okay?" Holly asked concerned. She saw Gail had difficulty stretching out. 

Gail nodded but didn't say anything about it. "So I don't have to worry about Chloe right?" 

"Yup." Holly nodded. "Let me see it." 

"See what?" Gail pretended not knowing. She successfully hid her discomfort since she got there but couldn't help it when she tried to stretch out. The second shooting didn't help either. 

"I'm a doctor Gail. You didn't seriously think you could fool me. I know that face." Holly had sat down next to Gail. 

Gail gave up. "Okay doctor. Do as you wish." She extended her hands on her side and waited for Holly to make her move. She watched Holly slowly and carefully unbuttoned her shirt up to the middle. She felt shivered down her back and suddenly she wished they weren't at the morgue but somewhere else. _Control yourself Gail Peck._ She swallowed. 

Holly frowned at the sight of the bruises. "Why didn't you tell me?" She glanced up at Gail then back down examined the bruises with great care. "Are you taking anything for the pain?" 

Gail nodded. This was why she didn't tell because she didn't want Holly to worry. The truth was she forgot to mention it but it wasn't the right time for this kind of things because something else was happening. "Yeah they gave me prescription." She paused to look at her girlfriend. "I'm sorry. I forgot. It kind of slipped my mind." She hadn't had time to think. 

Rodney coincidentally walked past the office and turned to smile at them both. He stopped when he saw Holly was bending forward and to him it was rather an awkward position. They both didn't notice he was standing there. 

Holly heard he cleared his throat and immediately complained. "She got shot but didn't tell me. You know why? Because she forgot." Holly sat up straight. So Rodney had a good view of what it was that Holly was complaining about. 

Rodney looked at his superior and said "Ooo that's bad. That's bad." His smile faded as soon as he saw Gail stared at him. He swallowed then decided it was better for him to leave. "Um I need to get the test report." He left. 

"A body armour is not really bullet proof. It's bullet resistant. Statistically speaking nothing can be bullet proof. It turns the bullet, slows it down and disperses the energy throughout the panel. High-velocity and hardened tip bullet like those fired from rifles can just cut through the fibers and punch through the vest." Holly talked to herself. "If the shooter used something like that..." She shook her head when the image of bodies that she used to see on the slab ran across her mind. "Even a small round travelling at high speed can do the damage." 

If Holly had started to give out facts like that Gail knew it was a sign of worry. Or may not. That was just Holly. "It's part of the job Holly." Gail took Holly's hand in hers. "I can't tell you not to worry because you would anyway. What I can tell you is that I always be cautious every time I go out there." She caressed her hands lovingly. "But things like this can happen to anybody." 

Holly sighed. "I know. Now that I'm dating a police officer I guess I should get use to it." She smiled weakly. "This will lasts for a few days or maybe a week." She pointed at the bruises. "Sore ribs." 

Gail leaned forward for a kiss and Holly complied. Sore ribs and unbuttoned shirt were forgotten. It wasn't long until they were interrupted. 

"Doctor Stewart?" They broke their kiss when they saw Rodney awkwardly standing by the door. He seemed to not know what to do. He blinked rapidly knowing he had come at the most inappropriate time. "Uh I can come back later." 

Holly laughed softly at his awkwardness. "No it's okay." She glanced at Gail who leaned back at the couch, buttoned up her shirt. "What's up?" 

He cleared his throat. "We just got an evidence came in. They need us to get a print out of a thumb." He felt a little uncomfortable with the blonde police officer's eyes on him. 

"Can't you do it yourself?" Gail asked. It was rather rude actually but she paid no mind. There was always something or someone interrupting them. 

"No I can't. I'm not certified." He said shoving his hand into his lab coat. Gail didn't know what he was talking about but wasn't going to ask. 

"I'll be there in a minute." Holly said quickly to send Rodney away. 

"Slacker." Gail said as Rodney turned to walk. He was about to say something when he looked at Holly, smiling at him. He nodded and left. 

"Hey go easy on him." Holly patted Gail's knee and got up. "I won't be long. I promise." 

"He just interrupted one of the best moments we had in a long time. I won't go easy on him." Gail said. "A thumb! And it's after hours." 

"Don't worry. I promise it won't be the last." Holly said as she walked out. 


End file.
